Mission X
by Nighty929
Summary: FINALLY FINISHED! A story about the next generation of Mutants, including Lance and Kitty's daughter, Kurt and Amanda's daughter and a few other new faces. These are my star creations, so please review!
1. Mission X Begins

Mission X Episode 1

This is a story about a group of characters that I've been working on for a loooong time. This happens around 16 years after the last X-Men Evolution episode. Only a few of the characters are introduced in episode one, so bear with me. If anybody wants to play in my RPG starring the members of Mission X, please look at my forum. The X-Men do not belong to me, But Switch, Lightning, Johnny Summers, Windstrider, Maestro, Ember, Wartech, Shifter, and Swordflash most definitely do.I will also be creating most of their villains. I hope you like it!

Kurt was extremely worried.

Amanda had been in the infirmary to a miniature demon for over five hours, he had run out of cigarettes, and Xavier had run out of paperwork, causing him to be bored and slightly annoying in that boss man way. Pacing, reading, and yelling out the window at Kitty weren't helping in the least. Scott walked in to check on him every fifteen minutes and all Kurt wanted to do was pop him one in the mouth.

As stated previously, Kurt was extremely worried.

"Kurt, will you sit down?" The Professor asked, agitated and following his erratic movements with his eyes. "Please? You are making me nauseous."

"No, I will not sit down," Kurt growled. "No I will not calm down, no I will not play chess, no I will not get more paperwork for you to do."

"Alright, alright." Xavier held up his hands and tried to smile. "I get it. You're not going anywhere."

"I'm sick of waiting." Kurt plopped down into the chair next to Xavier's. "When is it going to be over?"

It's different for every woman." Xavier patted his friend's hand. "She will be alright. Don't worry so much."

"I feel like I jinxed her life by even being in it." Kurt sighed. "Now she has to put up with a little blue furry brat who's going to hate her when he's fifteen."

Xavier looked at him. "Why are you so convinced it's going to be a boy?"

"So I can name him Stephan and get it over with."

The old man shook his head. "You _did_ find names for the minute chance that it's a girl, didn't you?"

"Oh yeah, like…" Kurt paused. "Um… uh, no."

"You have until Amanda is finished giving birth, which could be anywhere between two minutes to two hours. I suggest you start thinking of a few."

Kurt groaned.

At exactly that same moment, Hank walked in, smiling brightly. Kurt frantically ran through every girl name he could think of in his head and frowned, realizing that under all of this pressure he couldn't think of any.

"Kurt, you're a father," said Hank cheerfully. Kurt groaned again, causing Hank to furrow his brow. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," He said. "Please just say it's a boy."

"Sorry, Kurt, but it's a girl."

Kurt sighed and clapped his palm to his forehead. Then the door opened and Tabitha walked in, followed by Kitty.

"Tabitha!" Kurt shouted happily. "Kitty!"

"Kate," Kitty growled.

"Whatever, I have my name!" Kurt leapt to his feet and hugged first a confused Tabitha, then a pretty disgruntled Kitty. "Thank you for your amazingly expert and wonderfully accurate timing!!!!"

Hank looked at Xavier with raised eyebrows. In response, Xavier smiled. "I only taught him to teleport, not to think ahead."

"Tabitha Katherine! Whoopee, I'm a daddy!!!" Kurt shouted into a mildly amused Kitty's sweater. "Yayyy!!!"

Tabitha smirked. "I think it's time daddy had his nap."

"We are _not_ going to be late."

Amanda smiled and looked at Kurt with some sort of mix between love and exasperation. "It'll be fine. We'll be on time."

"I_ refuse_ to be late. Re_fuse._ Not because of a stupid earring."

"Daaaad," Catty called from in her room, door locked and listening to her parents outside of her door. "I _need_ my earring. I have one of them and they match my shirt."

"Does it really _matter_? Your _skin_ matches your shirt."

"It matters to me, dad."

Kurt sighed dramatically. If anyone on this wide, wide world deserved to sigh dramatically, it was probably Kurt. His daughter was fifteen and already she was Tabitha _Kath_erine Wagner, queen of the universe, and there wasn't a thing he could do about it. The ironic thing was, he had predicted on the day she was born that she would hate her mother at fifteen. Here was the day, and Catty loved her mother. She despised her father instead.

Catty was, in fact, was a lot like her father. She looked like him, demonic features and all. She joked about molting on the furniture. She was hotheaded and a little reckless, sometimes more than Kurt ever was. Also, she had a really fat mouth and she always had something to say. She was also a lot like her mom, in her facial features and with her obsession on looking pretty and presentable, which caused this scenario.

Kurt jumped when Catty opened the door. "Finally!" he shouted enthusiastically. "Now we can get out of here!"

Catty flipped her long, thick red hair in his face. She got the hair and the attitude from Mystique. "Okay, come on. I don't want to be late."

Kurt sighed as he followed her down the hallway of their little house. He had no idea where or how she managed to suck in Scott's born leadership.

Tara was fourteen, blonde, pretty, and sweet. Tara was an engaging and charming girl whose brains were as good as her face. Tara had a temper, and Tara was fiery.

Tara despised her mother at that moment.

Kitty Pryde, who never successfully changed her name to Kate, stood with her hands on her hips, staring down at her gift from God and wondered about a gift exchange program. "Young lady, you are going and that is _final_. I don't want to hear any more excuses and snide remarks. I want you to go to your room and get ready to go."

Tara stared at her from her seat on the couch, leaning back with her arms folded. "No. I'm not going. I don't want to see your stupid friends, and I don't want to go all the way to the institute just to sit around and let aunt Jean play with my hair and uncle Scott lecture me about power control. I don't even want to see uncle Kurt, because that would mean having to see CATTY."

"Tara Pryde," Kitty growled. Tara knew when to quit. When her mother said her name like _that_, it was time to quit. She stood up and brushed herself off, sighed heavily, and stormed up the stairs.

As she combed her hair and put it back in the usual high pony tail, she groaned. She hated these stupid get-togethers and she HATED Catty. She was the only other person her age, and she definitely didn't want to hang out with little seven-year-old Johnny Summers. As she pulled on her sweater, the wool rubbed against her fingers and created a larger than normal spark. "Ow! Stupid powers," she said to no one. The electrical charge she had gained from the microwave was still rattling around inside her. She went over uncle Scott's lesson again. "Absorb the energy you need in the morning to sustain yourself, discharge it slowly throughout the day. She had forgotten to discharge.

This was going to be a disaster.

Catty hadn't seen Tara for over a year. She heard she had gotten her powers, and she couldn't wait to feel it. Her default power was teleportation, but she could "switch" with anyone she touched, causing Tara to have Catty's power and Catty to have Tara's. She loved to "feel" new powers and she was running out of new powers to try.

However, Kitty Pryde's daughter seemed to want nothing to do with her.

"Leave me alone," Was her automatic greeting. Catty cringed, but looked at the younger girl in interest. She used to have brown hair.

"Did you dye your hair blonde?" She asked, trying to be social. Kurt was nearby, giving her a thumbs up.

"No, my powers turned it blonde," Tara replied scornfully.

"Well now I've gotta try it," Catty said happily.

"Oh, no. I've heard about your new hobby. I'm not letting you touch me." Then she stormed off without another word.

Catty turned and shrugged at her father, who smiled sadly. Then he got back to catching up with Rogue. Catty looked around and behind Rogue, as if hiding, was a boy. Catty had to stop herself from gawking. He was CUTE. His jet, soot black hair was scruffy and adorably messy, he had deep black eyes, and he stood, cool and calm, with his hands in his baggy jean pockets. Scott suddenly was behind her and she jumped and turned around.

"I see you've noticed Steven," he said, accepting her hug.

"Who is he?" She asked upon letting go.

"Steven Coale. I found him at Bayville Orphanage. We've been keeping him here until it calms down at the orphanage."

"What happened?"

"He burst into flames at the dinner table there. He injured three people. He generates fire."

"Oh," Catty said softly, looking at him again. He seemed depressed.

"Here," said Scott. She looked back at him as he clasped a necklace around her neck.

"Pretty," she said, looking at the gold locket at the end of the chain. "Oh! Is this my new image inducer?"

"Yes, it is," Scott smiled.

"Yay!" She turned on the new one and took off the watch inducer, which clashed with everything anyway. With the image inducer on, Scott thought to himself, Catty looks exactly like her mom, dark skin and all, just with bright scarlet hair. "It's beautiful, I love it. Thank you."

"Okay, Kurt just volunteered to start the bonfire in the back!" Rogue shouted.

"I did not," Catty heard her dad whisper to himself as he slouched toward the back door. She giggled.

Kitty walked up to her with an arm around Tara. "Why don't you girls get the chairs and plates with Johnny while we catch up outside?" She asked sweetly. Tara looked anything but sweet. Johnny was weaving around the adults holding up a toy airplane and making shooting noises. Catty shuddered, then nodded. "Okay, then!" Kitty said cheerfully.

"No problem, aunt Kitty," Catty said softly, watching her leave and looking at Tara, who looked ready to kill. Johnny ran up to them and lowered his plane.

"Hi!" He shouted.

Tara groaned.

Steven began to walk over, and Catty froze. No one said anything about him staying inside. "Um, I'll go get the chairs," She said quickly.

"Wait, don't go," Steven smiled and waved. "I'm new. My name's Steven. And um… you're Tara, right?"

"Hmph," said Tara.

"And you're Johnny. Nice plane."

"Captain America gave it to me!" The little boy shouted exitedly.

"And you must be…"

"Cotty. Um, Catty. Um, sorry!" She said quickly.

"Yeah, listen, I have to go outside with Mr. Summers. See you." Catty breathed again when he was gone. Tara shook her head at her.

"Pathetic," She snorted.

"Oh, yeah?" Catty retorted hotly. "And you don't think he's hot?"

"Not in the least."

"Then you're blind. Did you see his shoulders?" Catty held her hands together dreamily. "So _manly_."

"Get to work, princess," Tara grinned harshly, trying to get a rise out of the other girl.

"My dad says I don't have to listen to people like you," snapped Catty.

"At least you have a dad," Tara growled.

"What, do you miss that creep Avalanche? I'll bet he made a great dad, right before he ran out on you and aunt Kitty!"

Catty knew she had made a horrible mistake the moment she had finished her sentence. She didn't always think before she opened her mouth. Tara's eyes began to glow an electric blue, and static made some of her hair stand on end.

"Johnny, why don't you go play with your plane outside?" Said Tara with a snarl towards Catty.

"Um… okay," Johnny said quietly. "You mean I don't have to help anymore?"

"Yeah, go on and play."

The boy quickly ran out of the room and as soon as the backdoor slammed shut, Tara held her hands out. "Wanna play, Chatty Catty?"

"We shouldn't fight, not here," Catty said quickly.

"Oh, I think here's fine," Tara's hands charged with electricity and she blasted a surge of energy towards the blue girl.

"Augh!" Catty yelled as she leapt acrobatically out of the way. Her father was a master, and she was almost as good. "Tara, please! Not here!"

"Stay still," shouted Tara. "I don't want to chase you!"

"Can't we just settle this in the danger room?" Catty muttered under her breath as she dodged another blast.

Catty couldn't see where Tara had gone, so she stopped breathing and listened. Another trick of her father's. She heard the softest scrape of a shoe behind her.

Tara snuck as slowly as she could. She watched as her tail swung back and forth. Then she prepared to leap onto Catty's back. She dove through a cloud of sulfur and hit the ground, coughing.

"Can't catch me!" She heard Catty call from above. She looked up and grinned. She was hanging from the chandelier. Giggling, she leapt from the ceiling to the dining room table. As quickly as the fight had started, it had turned into a game of tag between Pryde and Wagner.

All through the first floor Catty leapt nimbly from furniture to floor to ceiling with Tara close on her heels, blasting and swinging her fists and no doubt causing a lot of damage. The chase abruptly ended when Catty leapt over Tara's head and dead into her father's chest.

"Oh…" She breathed as she looked up at him. "D-daddy…"

Kurt stood over her and then looked from her to Tara. Kitty was right behind him, and the Professor was in the doorway, looking around at his destroyed foyer.

"Tara Pryde…!" Kitty shouted. "Oh, I don't know what to say to you! Go and get in the car! Right now!"

"You too, Tabitha Katherine," Kurt said quietly. Catty hated it when he talked like that. It would be bad enough if he was angry with her, but he was disappointed.

"Actually…" The Professor rolled up beside his former students and smiled as Catty pulled herself up. "This is less damage than when Nightcrawler and Toad had their little game of tag in this room." Kurt looked at him incredulously, then down at his feet. "And Tara, you've shown a great improvement. As have you, Tabitha." He looked around. "As for the destroyed art and furniture, it can easily be taken out of your parent's pay."

Kurt and Kitty both scowled at their children.

"I would like them to stay here with me."

Kurt and Kitty both stared at Xavier.

"What? No, Tara can't stay here!" Kitty began, then stopped.

Kurt didn't say anything.

"I took good care of you two," The professor said quietly. "I'm sure I could do just as good a job or better with young Switch and Lightning."

"Codenames?!" Shouted Catty. "Yahoo!!"

"Oh, great," Kurt groaned.

"Can I, mom?" Tara pleaded, holding her hands together.

"Please?"

"_Please_?"

Kitty sighed and Kurt was hiding his face behind his hand.

"Fine," Kurt said finally. "Amanda's been trying to convince me anyway."

"Yeah," Kitty smiled. "At least she'll be safe here."

"But one scratch on her and she goes home," Kurt said, pointing at Xavier.

"Of course," The professor said, smiling. "Welcome to the new generation, girls. Steven Coale will be joining you as Ember, and I am currently looking for other mutants in need."

"Can I join, too?" Johnny called from the door, where he was standing with Scott and Evan.

"Not quite yet, kiddo," Scott smiled.

"Mission X might be a bit too big for you." Evan gave Catty a thumbs up.

"Mission X?" Tara asked quietly. "This already sounds bad."

"Don't be so negative," Catty put an arm around the other girl's shoulders. "We'll pull through and we'll be just as good as the X-Men, wait and see!"


	2. The Windstrider

Here is episode 2 of my first season. Please review when you get a chance, and my RPG is still open to anyone who wants to play or just ask me about the characters. Magneto, Quicksilver, and the X-Men do not belong to me.

Episode 2: The Windstrider

Tara Pryde woke up to the sound of her alarm going off. She rolled over and hit the snooze button, accidentally absorbing some of the energy and shutting it off. "Damn," She muttered under her breath. The extra surge coursed through her body and woke her up completely, destroying any chance of falling back to sleep. Sitting up and rubbing her eyes in the sudden light, she stretched and looked around. After two weeks of living in the institute with Catty and Steven, she was still getting used to her new surroundings.

Though she didn't want to admit it, she was starting to like Catty a great deal. They had absolutely nothing in common, but they both liked ice cream and nail polish, and that was a good start. Steven was turning out to be a quiet, polite, and shy boy who had a nasty temper when crossed. He was the "stare at a girl from the far corner but never go and talk to her" guy, and Tara knew this because she had watched him stare at Catty from the far corner and when she asked him why he didn't just talk to her, his immediate response was "um… huh?"

Johnny Summers was turning out to be a complete nuisance and wouldn't leave her alone. She was fine with helping him with his homework, but did she have to play with him, listen to his chatter, and constantly chase him out of her room too?

Getting up, she yawned and began looking for an outlet to absorb her breakfast from. She found one and giggled as she stuck a finger into it, thinking to herself that she was the only kid in the world who could do this and not get yelled at.

Refreshed, full, and in a slightly better mood, she walked out into the hallway and looked around.

Wasn't anyone awake yet?

………………..

Catty still couldn't find sleep after two weeks. She was uncomfortable thinking that her parents were not sleeping in the next room and her bed was two and a half miles away. She missed her house and room so much that all of her free time was spent there, and the room in the institute was an exact duplicate of her old room. Quite often she found herself teleporting back home to her own bed at night to get a few hours sleep in before morning. She had debated just asking to sleep at home and teleport to the institute every morning, but she figured she had to get used to it sometime.

Sitting up and looking at her clock, her alarm still hadn't gone off yet. She got up anyway and started to pick up her room. Being a hopeless neat nick like her father, she did this about three times daily. After she was done she wandered into the kitchen and saw that Tara was already awake and reading at the table, not eating as usual. "Sleep okay?" Tara asked.

"No," Catty moaned as she poured herself a bowl of cereal. "I'm just not getting used to the new space. It's really hard."

"Not for me," Tara said cheerfully. "Once I turned ten, my home was the mall. I've got no problems."

"But don't you miss your mom?"

"Sure I do, but I see her every day. I don't have to have her sleeping in the same house as me."

Catty sat down and wondered if she was just weird.

……………………

Steven Coale woke up quite a bit later than he expected, yawning and suddenly realizing he had slept through his alarm again. His dreams were getting worse, and they were always about the last day he spent at the orphanage when Tommy, Justin and Sora had all gotten a taste of his X-gene at the dinner table.

He called them every day at the hospital and they seemed to be doing okay, but Steven felt so guilty that even when Justin told him not to worry about it that he called every day anyway.

He was wondering about whether the girls had gotten up yet when he wandered headlong into Johnny in the hall.

"Watch it," muttered a very grouchy eight-year-old who was awake at six-thirty in the morning.

"Sorry," Steven called after him.

"Hey, you're awake," He heard someone say. He turned and saw Scott walking towards him, smiling cheerfully.

"Hi," Said Steven, keeping to his word minimum.

"Hey," Scott put a hand on his shoulder. "You still feel bad about what happened?"

"Yeah, sort of," He said, looking at his feet.

"I did too, at first," Scott let go and began to walk past him. "You'll get used to it. Try nor to worry about it, you'll get control faster."

"Okay."

Walking into the kitchen, he saw Catty and Tara were already up. "Hi," He said softly to them as he grabbed the box of cereal.

"Good morning!" Catty grinned enthusiastically. Steven couldn't help but smile. "Didja sleep alright?"

"Yeah, sure," He said. "Hey Tara."

"Hey," The blonde girl looked up from her book as he sat down with his breakfast. "I've got a good feeling about today."

"What?"

"We're gonna get a new teammate today," She smiled. "I just know it."

"You've been saying that everyday for the past two weeks," Catty said.

"Well, today I'm sure."

"You've been saying that every day, too," Steven took a bite of his cereal and opened a book, ignoring Tara's glare.

…………..

The professor called them into his office after their morning danger room session, and his hands formed a steeple as they all sat down. "Good morning, students," He said, smiling at them all. "I have good news. I have picked up a mutant signature in Westchester."

"I knew it!" Shouted Tara. Catty shushed her and Steven smiled at his feet.

"His name is Aaron Williams, seventeen years old, and hopefully I can get him to come here. His parents own a department store chain and they have quite a bit of money, and I've sent Aaron's father an E-Mail."

"Who's going to go and get him?" Catty asked.

"I think it will be Kurt and I. I have a picture of the boy and he looks a bit out of the ordinary."

"How?" Steven finally looked up.

"His hair and eyes are a rather unnatural shade of forest green. Perhaps if I bring Kurt, he'll be more willing to come."

"What if I go instead, Professor?" Catty smiled. "I think he might want to talk to someone closer to his age."

"That is a wonderful idea, Tabitha. I agree." Xavier began stacking his paperwork and put them away. "I would like to leave now, if you don't mind."

"Sure!" Catty leapt to her feet.

………….

Magneto was watching the video tape for the seventh time. The boy was promising. Rich, spoiled, arrogant, and powerful. One compliment and a nudge and Aaron Williams would be on his side.

"Quicksilver," He said softly.

The speed-demon was quickly at his father's side at full attention. "Yes, father?"

"I'm counting on you. I wish for this boy to be the first member of Mystique's new team. Get him to join by any means necessary."

"Sure thing, Sir," And Pietro Maximoff was gone.

Magneto knew he could count on his son. If anyone could connect with this boy, it was Pietro.

…………..

Catty looked at the Professor as she knocked on the front door of the Williams' two-story home. "They sure have a nice house," She said. "I hope he'll want to join. Do you know what he can do?"

"Not quite yet, but they appear to be element-based," Xavier said. The door opened and Aaron stood there, wearing headphones and eating a hotdog. "Yeah?" He said with his mouth full. Catty cringed. If her father had seen that, he would've smacked the boy upside his head.

"Aaron Williams?" Xavier held out a hand. "I'm Professor Charles Xavier. May we come in and speak with you and your parents?"

"Whattid I do wrong this time?" Aaron said, swallowing.

"Absolutely nothing."

"Okay, then," he smiled and walked back inside. "Come on in. MA! DAD!"

Catty was still cringing. "Doesn't he have any manners?" She whispered to Xavier.

"Apparently not," Xavier answered, looking amused.

As they got settled in the living room, Xavier formed a steeple again. "Mr. and Mrs. Williams," He began. "Your son is a special…"

"Hold up, that was the door again," Aaron said as he leapt up and bounded down the hall. Xavier sighed.

Catty listened to the doorway area with her sensitive ears. "Yeah?" She heard him say again. Was that the way he greeted everybody?

Then she heard something that made her heart stop.

"Hey Aaron. My name's Quicksilver. You wanna come out here for a second?"

"Professor!" She said quickly.

"I know." Xavier was already making his way down the hallway. Catty got up and followed, leaving Aaron's parents confused. "Pietro. Your father sent you, I presume?" He said as they got to the door. "Aaron is not interested."

"Not interested in what?" Aaron looked at Pietro quizzically.

"Butt out, Baldie," Quicksilver snarled. "Quit stepping on our turf."

"I'm turf?"

"You got here too late," Catty smirked.

"Huh?" Aaron held up his hands. "You know what? Everybody get out. I don't care what you want. Just get out." And with that, he slammed the door in their faces.

"Nice going, Wheels," Pietro folded his arms and scowled. "Now he's on neither of our sides."

"I was not aware that your side was recruiting."

"We weren't, but the Boss heard you were."

"Guys? Isn't it getting a little chilly?" Catty said softly. "For July, I mean." She was watching the leaves blow around and though she had fur, she could feel the wind on her face. It was a bit odd that the leaves had begun circling the house.

Xavier looked at the lawn for a moment. "I believe we know what the boy can do," he said quietly.

"He can control wind?" Pietro grinned.

"Yeah, but he doesn't have control and we just got him extremely upset," Catty began to realize that this whole trip might end in disaster. The wind was picking up so much they could see dirt and grass lift off of the ground. The Williams' house was about to become a tornado ground zero.

Catty grabbed the Professor and Pietro and teleported to the sidewalk across the street. "Stay here," She said. "I'll take care of this."

"Switch, wait--!" Xavier began, but she was already gone.

Standing in the living room, she looked around for Aaron's parents. They were talking in the kitchen, oblivious to the situation. She ran into the kitchen and grabbed their arms. "Wha—!" Shouted Mr. Williams. "What are you…"

"No time to explain," Catty said. "Brace yourselves and cover your noses."

"Miss, I demand an…"

BAMF.

"…explanation…?" Finished Mr. Williams weakly as he realized he had been suddenly transported outside. He looked at his pale-faced wife and then down at Xavier. "What is going ON here?!" He yelled with a red face. He looked at the house and saw the tornado forming. Pietro laughed as the man's jaw dropped.

"Welcome to a completely different world," Quicksilver said.

"Our son is in there!" Mrs. Williams cried.

"Your son is causing this," The professor explained. "He is a mutant, like me and the girl I came here with. Hopefully, she can calm him down long enough to stop this."

Meanwhile, Catty had found Aaron's room and went to him. He was sitting on the floor, holding his head and scrunching his eyes shut tightly. "Aaron!" She shouted above the deafening noise. The wind was stronger in here. Aaron's things and furniture were flying around the room at top speed. "Aaron!"

He looked up at her. "What's happening to me?!" He cried. "What's wrong with me?!"

She kneeled beside him, hanging on to the bedpost and trying with all her might to stay on the ground. Taking his hand and letting him feel the furry, three-fingered hand beneath the hologram, she smiled. "Nothing is wrong with you. I need you to focus on me. Can you do that?"

"I don't know," He screamed. "I can't think! My head hurts!"

"I know it does," She shouted back. "Focus on me! Listen to my voice and try to take control!"

Aaron squinted his eyes closed again. He looked like he was trying to hard. Catty squeezed his hand. Suddenly, she was ripped from the ground and was flying through the air. For a few seconds it was exhilarating, until she slammed into the wall. "Aaron, please!" She cried in pain. "Focus!!"

"Focus," He said to himself. "Calm…"

The winds slowly died down, and the house suddenly fell silent, and Catty fell to the ground with a thud. "Are you okay?!" Aaron shouted and ran to her.

"I'm fine…" she groaned as she got up with his help. "You need a few power control lessons."

"I guess so," He said, smiling. "Any chance that Professor guy's offering any?"

"Yeah," She said. "He is." She glanced out the window. Pietro had gone. "Guess he knows when he's lost."

"Who was he, anyway?"

"We'll explain everything in the car," She laughed. "It's really an earful."

Next: Hidden Mind


	3. Hidden Mind

Everyone note that I don't own Professor Xavier or Mastermind. I do own Ember, Windstrider, and introducing: Maestro!

Episode 3: Hidden Mind

Benjiman Malcolm, age 10, looked out of his window and realized that it was morning. He hadn't slept all night in his latest desperate attempt to keep the nightmares away. Blinking away the absent sleepiness, he stood up. Ben was never sleepy. As a matter of fact, he preferred to read at night, but lights out was at nine o'clock and his miniature lamp had been taken away.

Putting on his glasses and stretching out the stiffness due to eight hours of just plain sitting, he glanced at the clock and knew no one would be up at five AM. The boy shuffled through the hallway and looked at all the closed doors on the third floor of the orphanage. When he got to the stairs, he stopped dead.

Looking down the narrow stairway, Ben felt a dizzy feeling coming on and wanted to faint. No one was awake to help him down the stairs this morning. Flashes of being carried down a flight of stairs by a crying woman raced through his mind as he leaned against the wall and slid to the ground. He couldn't do it. Not today.

………………..

Steven grimaced at his bowl of cereal in agitation as Aaron strutted his way into the kitchen. He had gotten up this early to avoid the obnoxious new guy, and yet here he was. He felt like he would have been better off just staying in bed.

"G'morning!" shouted Aaron cheerfully, grabbing the box of cereal off of the table and sticking his hand into it. "How's kicks?"

"My 'kicks' are fine," Steven said dully, trying to seem uninterested.

"Man, this place rocks. Doesn't this place rock?"

"Yeah, it sure does," Steven moaned, realizing he was stuck with Aaron until the girls got up. Thinking of the girls made him think of Catty. Looking at his bowl, he struggled not to turn red.

"What about that Tara, huh? Is she just playing hard to get or is she really that much of a bitch?"

"I wouldn't say she's a…"

"I mean, come _on_! The people around here should loosen up, have some fun!" He grabbed Steven's shoulder and shook him lightly. "Including you, tiger."

"Hey, get your hand off of me!" Steven shouted, yanking away. "What is your problem? Why do you have to talk? And stop eating out of the cereal box! Human Beings eat out of BOWLS."

Aaron stood there, hand halfway to his mouth, staring at Steven. He was obviously startled by Steven's sudden outburst.

"Sorry, Aaron. I didn't mean to snap like that. I just… you know…"

"No, man, I get it. I'm intruding on your personal space. I get that." He grabbed a bowl and sat down across from Steven. "I'll just sit here and be quiet. Quiet quiet quiet. I swear. No noise"

Steven couldn't help but smile. Aaron wasn't so bad. He just needed a bit of taming.

………………….

Ms. Carol was walking down the third floor hall when she passed little Ben near the stairs.

"Oh, dear," She said sweetly. "Do you need some help?"

Ben nodded gratefully And took her hand. As Ms. Carol walked down the stairs, Ben held onto her hand and buried his face into her shirt. They got to the first floor in almost no time. "There you go, honey," She smiled down at him and ruffled his brown hair. "See? That wasn't so bad."

Ben grimaced as she left. He never spoke, so everyone treated him like a little child. Some of the other kids even treated him like he was stupid. But Ben was far from stupid, and he smiled at this fact as he curled up in a chair and began to read.

The peace was short-lived, as Ben soon found out. At seven the other kids were waking up and bounding down the stairs. He tried to slink into a corner, but he was too late.

"There's our little metal detector," One of his usual nemeses called out as he grabbed Ben's arm.

"Yeah, it's dumb-dumb Benny," another boy shouted. "How're you feeling, dumb-dumb Benny?"

Ben flinched.

"Awwww, is dumb-dumb Benny afraid?" The first boy said. "Is the widdle mutie afwaid of us?"

They followed as he attempted escape to the little playground in the front yard. Bayville looked terrible. The boys each took an arm and sat him down on a swing. "Come on, talk for us, Benny," One of them said. "We know you can talk with your powers. Come on."

"Oo, he c an make that pretty music he makes when he's all alone," The other smiled harshly. "Poor widdle Benny."

"You gonna find any metal for us today, little metal detector?" They leaned in close as one grabbed his ear. "A few quarters for your pals?"

Ben didn't cry. He never cried.

………….

Steven and Aaron, walking to the park to play with Steven's football, stopped in front of Bayville orphanage as Steven walked up to the gate and looked up at the house.

"This where you grew up?" Aaron asked, standing next to him. Steven had his hands shoved deep into his pockets as he nodded. "Nice place."

"Yeah," Steven said softly.

"Hey," Aaron said suddenly as Steven began to walk away. "What's going on over there?"

Steven looked where Aaron was pointing and saw three boys on the playground. He recognized Kevin and Doug, and the third was a ten-year-old boy he couldn't put his finger on.

"C'mon, let's go help him out," Aaron clenched his fists eagerly. "Poor little guy. What're they doing?"

The two of them watched with wide eyes as the little boy plucked a quarter out of thin air and handed it wordlessly to Doug. Kevin laughed as another coin floated upwards, and the little boy handed him that one, too.

"A mutant?" Aaron said.

"A magnetic," Steven whispered. "I remember him now—that's Ben, from the third floor. He's supposed to be retarded or something. He doesn't talk, and he's really afraid of stairs."

"How do you know he's a magnetic?"

"He used to find coins on the playground and build things with them," Steven watched Ben give another coin to Doug. "Once the guys found out, little Ben was toast. I guess they just use him now."

"Well, that's not right," Aaron growled. "Come on, let's go get those two little punks."

They climbed over the gate and walked to the playground. Ben looked up at Steven quickly, and then looked away.

"Doug! Kevin! Cut it out!" Steven shouted, shoving them away from Ben. "Look at him. Just stop and look at him. He's miserable!"

"Steven?" Kevin said incredulously. "Steven Coale? You came back?"

"You had the guts to come back after what you did?" Doug growled and punched his palm. "Muties ain't wanted here."

"Yeah, well, we're here. What're you gunna do about it?" Aaron grinned as the wind picked up a little. Steven's eyes were turning red.

"N-no fair!" Kevin shouted. "Three against two isn't fair!"

"And you two against one little kid _is_ fair?" Steven said in a low, threatening voice.

"What goes around comes around," Aaron smirked as the wind moved Doug's pile of coins in a steady circle. "In your case, quite literally. Unless you get out of here and leave Ben alone."

They nodded and ran toward the house. Ben stared after them and then looked up at Aaron and Steven, mouth hanging open.

"Howdy, partner," Aaron waved. "You are most definitely welcome." As they started to leave, Steven felt a high five with someone he wanted to strangle that morning was in order.

_Wait!_

Both of them stopped dead and slowly turned. They had heard it, and Ben was standing all alone behind them.

_You're like me._ Ben grabbed Steven's arm. He was speaking without moving his lips, and neither of them were sure how. _You have to help me._

"How're you doing that?" Aaron asked in a small voice.

_When I vibrate metal a certain way, it makes sound that I can use to talk with._

And you can't talk with your mouth? Those God-given vocal cords are handy, Aaron thought.

_I choose not to speak, Aaron. It's not like I can't._

Aaron's jaw dropped. "You're a telepath, too?"

_Yes, I am. Can you help me? Please?_

" Not us," Steven said, putting a hand on Ben's shoulder. "But we know someone who can."

………………..

The Professor rolled out into the hallway and closed the door. Aaron and Steven were waiting, arms folded.

"Well? What's his deal?" Aaron asked.

"The boy is indeed powerful," Xavier said. "And I have discovered a unique pattern of self-placed blocks in his memories."

"He gave himself amnesia?" Steven shook his head. "Can you find why?"

"Not yet, no," Xavier replied, forming a steeple again. "As of now, he remembers being found at age eight, wandering around the streets of Bayville. He's been at the orphanage ever since, and he hasn't been adopted because he tends to put people on edge."

"Poor little guy," Aaron said. "Something really bad must have happened to him."

"Yeah," Said Steven. Ben walked out slowly and looked up at Steven. "Well, good night. Come on, Ben, I'll show you where you can sleep tonight."

Xavier watched as the three boys went to their rooms. The headmistress of Bayville orphanage had almost given the boy away. He waited for them to be out of sight before he went back into his office and picked up the phone.

"Jason Wyngarde? Yes, It's me. Mastermind, I'd like to talk to you about your son."

NEXT: Magneto strikes!


	4. Strike

Episode 4: Strike

When Lance Alvers woke up that morning he was unaware that this day would not be like other days with the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, nor that he would find himself fighting for an unexpected cause, so when he got up, he merely thought to himself, "I wonder if Pietro is up yet."

He wandered his way into the main room where he grabbed a piece of toast and sidled up to Magneto working at the computer of their underground base. "Wat'cha doing?" He asked with his mouth full. "Looking for more kids?"

"No, not today," Magneto replied, drinking some of his coffee. "Kindly stop spraying crumbs on the hardware."

Lance took a few steps pack and looked over the screen quickly. "What's that for, then? That program you're encoding?"

"It's a sophisticated virus I will soon be sending to Charles Xavier's mainframe security system," Magneto said coolly. "It will discreetly shut down the security long enough for you, Quicksilver, and Gambit to get inside and download the information on Xavier's five recruits. This will be done tonight."

"Oh," Lance muttered. "Okay, then."

"Is there a problem?"

"Oh, no, sir. Of course not," Lance waved away the question. "Not at all."

"You're concerned for your daughter." Magneto turned his head to look at him. "Tara, is it? Don't worry about her. She will be with us soon enough."

"With us?"

"Yes, along with these other fine young mutants. They will make up our new team."

"Listen, I just thought we could find our own batch, play fair for once."

"Play fair?" Magneto's brow furrowed. "Play fair? Since when do you concern yourself about the fairness of a situation?"

"Since I became a dad," Lance muttered to himself as he left the room. He didn't want Tara anywhere near this business. No, she was safer at the institute. It's why he left her and her mother in the first place.

He had to warn Kitty, and he had to warn Kitty fast.

……………….

"Yawn," Tara said as she walked into the kitchen. "Groan," She mumbled as she saw her mother sitting at the table. Kitty turned and shooed at Steven and Aaron, talking over at the refrigerator.

"You should have seen Ben's face when the session was over," Steven laughed.

"Yeah, I really wish I had," Aaron started, but then he heard the shooing sounds. "Shoo? Ms. Pryde, are you SHOOING us?"

"Just get out," Kitty growled.

"Yes, ma'am, no problem," said Steven as they scurried away.

"Nice shirt, T," Aaron whispered at Tara as he shut the door. She shuddered and sat down.

"Don't you like him?" Kitty asked.

"Not really, he's kind of a creep," Tara grumbled as she played with her morning charge on her finger. "He won't, like, leave me alone, y'know?"

"Oh, I know," Kitty said, rolling her eyes. "Get a good charge from the socket this morning?"

"Yeah, but it felt kinda funny," Tara smiled. "See? Full of peppy energy, ready to start the day."

"Good. Well, just wanted to check on you," Kitty got up and grabbed her purse. "Are you alright this morning? You seem pale."

"I'm okay," She said softly, watching her mother leave and listening to the front door open and close. She glanced at her hand, which was shaking. Grabbing it, she held it down and tried to stop the shaking, but the other hand started to shake, too. Maybe she had caught something.

Maybe.

……………..

Ben felt like his mind was being sifted through like fingers in sand. He looked up at the Professor and wondered what would happen if he fought against the man's mind. Which one of them would win? He pushed the idea quickly out of his mind as Xavier pulled away.

"Nothing today, Ben," He said, smiling as he ruffled the boy's hair. "Go on, go see if Mr. Summers is around to watch you in the danger room."

Ben leapt up in excitement. The danger room was becoming one of his favorite things in the institute. He could let loose there, do things he never thought he could do with both mind and magnetism. He loved the feel of metal under his control.

_Do you think he could watch me right now?_

"I think so," Xavier formed another steeple on his desk. The boy's mastery over his magnetic powers amazed him and directly mirrored his complete lack of telepathic control. "I believe he's just finished breakfast. Go on, or you'll miss him."

Ben ran out of the room and down the hall toward the elevator. Xavier smiled as he watched him go. He felt almost like a father again.

He glanced at his computer and frowned. There was two messages. One from Mastermind, he deleted that after scowling at another request to see Ben. The other was empty, sent directly to his security systems. It appeared to have been already read.

He deleted the empty email, thinking Logan must have taken care of it. After all, he was in charge of security.

…………………..

In the danger room, Aaron, Ben, and Tara fought a sentinel and were wining. Ben cackled his strange magnetic cackle, Aaron flew through the air on his fairly new 'wind wings', and Tara sucked all of the energy she could. She felt strange. The more power she harnessed, the weaker she felt. As she released energy, something was staying inside of her that made her ache.

She began to lower her arms as the mighty sentinel fell, and watched as the forms of Maestro and Windstrider swam before her, cheering for their victory and lack of casualties. She felt very weak, and she wanted to just lie down and go to sleep. As she felt her body start to fall backward, Aaron was suddenly by her side, holding her up. "Tara! What's wrong?" She heard him shouting, but it was as if he was far away. "Tara! Lightning? Tara!!"

The last thing she saw was his worried face staring down at her and a sudden warm feeling she had never felt before as he lifted her up and held her, a feeling something like….

………………

"Tara?"

She woke up and looked around, realizing she was in a warm bed and surrounded by her teammates. Catty sat directly next to her. She could see Aaron, Steven and Ben nearby, talking amongst themselves. When Aaron saw that she was awake, he rushed to her side and grabbed her hand.

"Tara, are you okay? What happened?"

"I dunno," She said weakly, trying to sit up. Catty held her down.

"Relax, you're fine," Catty smiled at her and pet her hair. "See? Your mom is coming, so you just stay here until she gets here."

She nodded and took the water that Aaron handed her. "Here, I know you don't usually drink anything, but Dr. McCoy said it might make you feel better," He said quietly. She smiled as warmly as she could at him. She felt the warmness again and shook it off. What was _wrong_ with her?

…………………

"Magneto, you have to stop."

Magneto turned to see Lance storming into the main room.

"You're killing her! The virus is in her system. It'll eat her from the inside out."

Magneto frowned. "Yes, it's a sacrifice we must take. In order to get the information we need, some lives must be lost. It's for the future of Mutantkind. Don't you see, Avalanche?"

"No, I don't see, and I won't help you kill my daughter!" Lance shouted. "I won't let you hurt her!"

"I see. I was afraid of this." Magneto pressed a button. "You will be a liability. I will have to get you out of my way."

Quicksilver and Gambit entered the main room.

"If you are going to harm my mission, they will have to harm you. I hope you understand."

Magneto strode from the room.

"You gunna change your mind? I don't want to fight you," Pietro grinned. "But I will if I have too."

"I want to fight you," Gambit said. "Go on. Give me your best shot."

"Are you guys sure about this?" Lance tried. Gambit simply smacked his quarterstaff against his palm. "Okay then."

The room began to shake slightly. Pietro squealed. "What are you, nuts? We're underground, you moron!"

"I know," Lance whispered. He had to save Tara by any means necessary. If that meant crawling out of the rubble with the antivirus, so be it.

Gambit threw everything he had at him, laughing his Cajun head off. Lance scowled as he cried, "Anyone want to play fifty-two pick up?"

"I don't have time for your games!" Lance shouted as he knocked Remy off of his feet.

Pietro sped passed him and grabbed the antivirus disk. "Bet you can't catch me!" He cackled. "C'mon, Lance, you're faster than that! Come and get me!!"

Lance created a trench in front of the speed demon, causing him to trip and sent the disk flying. Lance dove for it and Gambit caught it. Lance tackled him to the ground. He stopped as the disk was suddenly charged.

"No!!" He cried. Remy stopped and looked at him. "My daughter…" Lance whispered. "If you destroy that disk, my daughter will die…"

"What do you care, she's with the X-Men now!" Pietro shouted. "Come on, Gambit, just blow it up!"

"Please," Lance groaned.

Remy looked from Lance to Pietro, unsure of what to do. Disobeying a direct order would mean severe punishment, but Lance… Lance's daughter…

Remy sighed and de-charged the disk, tossing it to Lance. Sighing in relief, he began to leave.

"What are you doing?!" Pietro shouted. "Gambit!"

Remy held Pietro back as Lance left. "Leave him. He has a child he has to protect. I respect that."

……………………..

Kitty heard the doorbell ring at two-thirty in the morning, and she was the only one in the institute still awake. Getting up, she made her way to the door.

Lance was there.

"Lance!" She gasped. "Lance, what are you doing here? You can't just…"

"Sshh," He said softly. "Here, take this. It'll help Tara."

"Daddy?"

They both looked at the stairs and saw Tara limping down them. "Daddy!"

Kitty stepped aside to let hem hug. Lance kissed Tara's forehead gently. "Here, absorb the antivirus. You'll be cured."

"Thank you," Kitty whispered.

Lance began to leave, and Tara hugged him tighter. "Don't go!"

"I have to, sweetheart," He said softly. "I'm sorry."

"I'll go with you!"

"No, Tara. Stay here with your mom." Lance pushed her away. "Stay where it's… safe."

"Go upstairs, Tara," Kitty said. As they watched her leave, Kitty felt his arms around her. Her breath was caught in her throat as he kissed her softly. When she finally opened her eyes, he was gone.

Upstairs, watching her father leave, Tara burst into tears.

"T?" She heard someone say. She turned sharply to see Aaron.

"What?!" She snapped, quickly wiping her tears away.

"Aaron smiled. "Just checking," He said quietly as he closed the door. She smiled, and when she knew he couldn't hear her, she sighed.

NEXT: The return of Forge and the introduction of Wartech!


	5. Wartech

So sorry it's been such a while, the internet's been down. Thank you everyone for such wonderful reviews. I am now going to introduce member 6 out of 8 of my Mission X series. Please review and if anyone has questions or just wants to talk (You can even request stories!) please subscribe to my forum.

Episode 5: Wartech

Aaron was still sleepy when his alarm clock went off for the fifth time. He glanced groggily at the clock. It was almost seven thirty.

The knock at the door startled him enough for a jump. As Aaron landed on the floor, the door opened. Johnny peered in. "What do you want, you little runt?" growled Aaron.

"Dad says you gotta get up now," Johnny grinned cheerfully. "So get up!"

"Right, right," He mumbled as Johnny closed the door. Aaron could sense long days, and this was going to be one of them.

It's not that he didn't like Johnny, they all did, but a constant bombardment of toys and yelling and running around could easily get on anyone's nerves. And as someone with his IQ, Johnny could really be an insufferable know-it-all. He was, technically, a genius.

Shuffling into the kitchen, Aaron saw that everyone was awake and Catty was already being lectured by her father.

"This is the fourth time I've told you, and I'm not going to tell you again. If you can't explain to me exactly what happened in that danger room this morning, you're grounded."

"Dad, I'm a teleporter, that's all."

"Then how did it happen?"

Aaron realized at this moment that Kurt was probably the only person who didn't know about Catty's switching powers. He snickered to himself and sat own next to Steven.

"Cat's out of the bag," Steven whispered. "Lord Wagner saw Catty switch with me this morning. She was trying to keep me out of trouble for losing control."

"Why doesn't he know, again?"

"Because Catty already has enough grief from him about controlling her teleporting," Steven sighed into his breakfast. "She didn't want more hassles because he doesn't think she can control every other power she could potentially have."

"A bit tight, isn't he?"

"Only with Catty. To everyone else, he's pretty cool."

"My dad doesn't really talk to me about my powers," Aaron said, pouring himself a bowl of cereal. "Actually, we don't talk much at all anymore…" He looked at the carton of milk in his hand and talked to it instead of Steven. "I'm not sure he's comfortable with the whole mutant thing."

"Yeah, a lot of people aren't," Steven smiled. "But he doesn't love you any less. Listen, He'll get used to it, okay?"

"How would _you_…" Aaron began, when quite suddenly there was a loud ringing noise. The door-bell was ringing.

"You kids stay here. Catty, don't move, I'll get it." Kurt put down his papers and walked out, giving the "I'm watching you" sign to Catty as he left.

"Great," Catty groaned. "I just stepped into hell."

"Well at least now he knows," Tara tried to help.

"How is that a good thing?"

"Well, I know I hate keeping secrets from my mom. Maybe it's better if he knows so you don't have to lie to him anymore."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

Ben looked up from his silent spot and swiveled his head to look at the door. In the month or so that he'd been there, the others had learned that meant business.

"What?" Aaron asked.

_A boy. A new mutant in the house. With a man I don't know, but Mr. Wagner knows. Not sure if it's safe._

"If dad knows the guy, it's probably safe," Catty said quietly, looking a little wary. They had all just gotten used to each other as a team, just the five of them. A new team member would be a disaster.

Kurt walked in with an arm around a man's shoulders. None of the kids knew him, so they just looked around at each other.

"Everybody, I'd like you to meet my buddy Forge. He's brought his nephew to stay."

………………..

"So…"

The five members of Mission X sat around the living room with Tyler McBreo, trying to pass the time as Kurt and Forge caught up in the kitchen.

"Hi," Tyler said, sensing the tension he had created. "I… Um…. Yeah. Hi."

They all sat in silence for another minute. Aaron surveyed the room, curious as to how the others were reacting to this stranger. Catty seemed like stone, staring at Tyler as though trying to bore a hole through his face. Steven seemed extremely nervous. Ben was looking at him with an amount of curiosity that seemed dangerous for a kid his age. And Tara… Tara…

Aaron immediately turned bright red. Tara seemed star struck by this guy. He was handsome, sure, and tallish, but not as tall as he was, and the dark skin really made his green eyes look cool, and he had that cool black hair in a short cut, but come ON! He felt the jealousy course through him as Tara gazed. This girl he had been trying to win for a month and now this!

Steven hit him in the shoulder, making him realize he had been grinding his teeth and growling quietly.

"So, I'm Tyler, and I can build stuff."

"You can build stuff." Catty said coolly before Aaron could say anything snide.

"Yeah."

"Like what?"

"Well, I specialize in high-tech defensive machinery and non-lethal weaponry."

They all looked around at each other, unsure of what Tyler had just said.

"Really?" Shouted Johnny from the doorway. "Can I see?"

"Um… sure, kiddo," Tyler smiled weakly, quickly transforming his arm into a dangerous-looking weapon thing. Aaron's eyebrows rose.

"Neat!" Johnny grabbed Tyler's arm and turned it around, examining every detail closely. Tyler looked amused. "Wow, is this a proton cannon? This is really masterfully designed. Did you do all of this yourself?"

"I sure did," He laughed and ruffled Johnny's hair. "How'd you know that it was a proton cannon?"

"The wiring and build gives it away," The eight-year-old let go of his arm and grinned, closing his eyes in pride of his knowledge. "You were sure right when you said you were a master of non-lethal weaponry."

The others gave each other looks of confusion and shrugged.

………………..

Aaron was a little surprised to find that the original X-Men were suiting up and the Professor was prepping the jet. "Where you guys going?" He asked Rogue as casually as he could. Asking Rogue anything was a risk, but she seemed to be the least busy.

"Responding to an emergency distress call," Storm walked over and answered for her. Storm really gave Aaron the creeps. He figured it was probably the fact that her weather powers were far more diverse and powerful than his wind control. "You and Catty are in charge until we get back in a few hours. Can you handle it?"

"Yeah, sure." Aaron waved a hand in dismissal. "Don't worry, I got it covered."

"That's exactly the kind of behavior from you that worries me," Storm smiled at him and patted his head. "You shouldn't be able to have a party; school hasn't started yet and Catty's too responsible as a team leader for that kind of misbehavior. I trust you will be just as responsible as the oldest."

"Alright, we'll be good," Aaron grinned. "What's the worst that could happen?"

Kurt walked over. "Whenever someone says that, I get worried."

"We used to say it all the time," Rogue stood and brushed her arms off. "Actually, _you_ used to say that all the time, Elfie."

Ignoring her, Kurt looked at Aaron. "Make sure someone's with Catty during her danger room exercise at four. Forge is coming with us, so I want you or Ben in there with her."

"Will do," Aaron said.

"Okay. See you in a few hours," Rogue waved as the X-Men boarded the jet. As they took off, Aaron whooped loudly. Freedom!

…………………….

"I don't want anyone in there with me."

Catty stood in front of Aaron and Ben with her arms folded, frowning fiercely at them.

_I should at least be in the observatory, just in case you get hurt,_ said Ben, mildly hurt that Catty didn't want his help.

"I won't get hurt. I think I can manage a few holograms," Catty smiled, trying to put them at ease. "Come on. No one has to know! One little training exercise alone is all I need. Please?"

Aaron sighed. "Fine."

_But…!_

"It's okay, Benny," Catty grinned down at him. "I'll be fine."

Ben scowled and gave up with a little stomp of his foot.

Meanwhile, Johnny was showing Tyler around the control systems in the basement.

"Wow. This was all built by the Professor?" Tyler asked, gazing around in awe.

"Yeah," Johnny bounded along beside him in excitement. "Well, most of it. It's really cool just to look at it. Wanna see the main security room?"

"I dunno, after that remarkably warm welcome from the team earlier, I don't think I'm going to be staying here," Tyler frowned. "I'm obviously not welcome as a teammate. What if they don't ever like me?"

"I think they will," Johnny said in his usual upbeat chipper voice. "Eventually. Really! I mean, they don't like _me_ very well still, but I think they're getting there."

"If you say so."

"Hey!" Aaron's voice called from behind them. "What're you two doing down here? The others are upstairs and Catty's in the danger room, and you guys decide to wander around down here unsupervised?"

"Oh, don't pretend to be responsible, Aaron," Johnny scoffed at Aaron's serious tone. "I'm just showing Tie around. What's wrong with that?"

"What's wrong is that you and _'Tie'_ could break something," The older boy scowled at them and pointed up the stairs. "Let's go, right now."

"Oh, come on. I got a few impressions off of you back in the living room and being a goody-two-shoes wasn't one of 'em," Tyler poked Aaron in the arm. "One look around the security systems, then we'll go upstairs. We won't touch anything, and if you want, you can even stay with us to 'supervise'."

Aaron scowled at Tyler's grin. Aaron hated that grin already, and he already disliked sixteen year olds enough, Steven being the exception. He knew what it was like to be a sixteen year old show off and didn't trust them.

"Grrr… fine, but five minutes only, then we go back upstairs. I don't want to leave Steven and Tara alone with Ben very long, the poor kid might not be able to handle them."

……………………

Steven tapped his pencil against the tabletop in nervousness. "Isn't she done with her session yet? Aaron should be back already. Catty should be done already."

"Relax," Tara smiled and put an arm around his shoulders. "You worry too much. No girl likes it when a guy worries this much about her."

"W-what?" Steven jumped and carefully removed Tara's arm. "Who said anything about that? I'm just saying that Aaron and Catty should be back up here with us already."

"Oh, stop it, Steven," Tara laughed. "We _all_ know."

"Know what?" Steven looked from her to Ben in confusion and desperation. "There's nothing to… to…"

Ben's eyebrows disappeared into his bangs.

"Is it really that obvious?"

_Well, I'm half blind and need inch-and-a-half thick glasses and it's obvious to me, _Ben smiled weakly at him, a peace offering.

"Oh my God." Steven covered his face.

"Well, Cat doesn't know, if that makes you feel any better," Tara rubbed his shoulder affectionately. "She's blinder than Ben."

Suddenly red lights began to blink and spin all over the living room. The three of them looked around as the alarms started going off at full blast. Ben covered his ears.

_SECURUTY'S BEEN BREACHED!! _Ben screamed in his odd metallic voice.

"Are they still here?!" Steven shouted over the noise.

_No, they're gone already, but they… they… _Ben stopped and looked at the elevator, then at the widows. Metal shutters were closing over them quickly. _The school's going into lockdown!_

………………..

"What did you _do_?!" Aaron shouted as the doors to the security room slammed shut behind them. Alarms were flashing and screaming, and they could hear doors slamming shut all over the sub-basement levels.

"I—I haven't even touched anything yet!" Tyler cried. Johnny screamed as his fingers were almost clipped off by a shutter closing over the tiny intercom button. "What's going on?"

Johnny pointed at the computer screen and screamed. "Defcon 4's been turned on!!"

"What the heck's a Defcon 4 doing in a house?!" Aaron cried miserably as he pounded on the door. "Sealed up tight, there's no way out of here."

Tyler, busy typing away at the computer, suddenly grinned. "Well, we're safe," He said, looking at the schematic that appeared on the screen. "The security room is shut tight, but anyone inside is safe from any weapons that might go off in the house of outside. The whole house is programmed to attack anything that moves."

"We're safe?" Aaron growled as he grabbed Tyler's shoulder and squeezed hard enough to make him wince. "We're safe? What about the others? They're out in the house, probably moving. Catty's in the most weapon oriented portion of the whole mansion. Tara…" Aaron stopped cold, eyes widening, and let go of Tyler. "Turn it off!"

"I'm trying, but I can't override," He said. "It won't let me shut it down."

"Then get us out of here!"

"I can't."

"Just do it!"

"I can't!" Tyler whirled around to face him. "I am trying as hard as I can. I am going to find a way to shut this thing off. Just have some faith in me, okay?!"

Aaron and Tyler stared at each other for a few seconds. Johnny looked from one to the other, face red and tears running down his cheeks as he sniffled. Then Aaron nodded silently and held out his hand. Tyler took it, then turned around and got back to work at the computer.

……………….

Catty almost didn't realize that the level seemed too high until she was hit. Collapsing and scraping her hands on the ground, she looked at her wounded leg. Instead of a small bruise, there was a clear burn mark where some of the fur had been singed off. She looked around at the weapons pointed at her. As she slowly pushed herself to her feet, the weapons locked onto and followed her head. The robots and the holograms had gone, leaving only the blank silver walls and floor and the blasters protruding from every direction.

"Danger Room, shut down all weapon functions!" She shouted toward the observatory.

The weapons clicked, but did not disarm.

"Danger Room, _shut down the weapons_," Catty glanced worriedly at the blast doors closing over the entrance. "End the session!"

The weapons began to fire. Leaping and dodging, she was finally brought down by a laser that cut deep into her arm. Wincing, she stopped moving and looked up from her prone position. The guns were scanning the room, then most of them retracted, only one remaining trained on her. All she had to do was stay still and she would be safe. She just wasn't sure how long she could stay perfectly motionless.

…………………

Ben destroyed a blaster as another one shot at Steven. Tara dived under a table as a laser blast destroyed the sofa she had just been sitting on. The three heavies on the team continued to blow up, disarm, or otherwise get rid of the blasters when Ben suddenly stopped and stood completely still. His head was beginning to buzz with an incredibly bad, wretched feeling he only got when something disastrous was about to happen. He glanced at the monitor of the small computer near the television, oblivious to everything else around him.

Self Destruct in 10… 9… 8…

……………………

"7… 6…"

"Hurry!!" Aaron screamed as Tyler and Johnny fiddled with the wires.

"5… 4…"

Tyler grabbed a blue wire and looked at the schematics. "I have to cut this one…"

"No, don't!" Johnny cried, grabbing it away. "We'll blow to smithereens! We have to cut the yellow one with the black and red stripes!"

"Johnny, I think I know more about this than you…"

"3… 2…"

"Well, I live here and my dad told me before to cut the yellow one with the stripes!"

"JUST CUT SOMETHING NOW!!!!" Aaron shouted as loud as he could.

There was the sound of a snip, and then, "…1… click."

The boys sat in the circle they had been crouched in, arms covering their heads and Tyler's hand holding the scissors hovering over the cut yellow wire with the red and black stripes. Everything was extremely quiet.

"Oh my God," Tyler whispered.

"Told ya!" Johnny giggled, happy to be alive.

…………………

"Professor, we'll be getting back home in about three minutes. Anyone want to bet on whether or not the house is still standing?" Kurt called back from the co-pilot seat. From the pilot seat, Storm glared at him.

"Sure, I bet fifteen dollars that the house is in ruins." Scott said. Kurt snorted.

"You got a lot of faith in the kids, shades." The blue mutant pressed a button and then looked at Jean. "What about you?"

Jean had been what seemed to be Jet-sick the whole way there and back, eyes closed and leaning on Scott's arm.

"Okay. Any bets from the man upstairs?"

"Yes," Xavier smiled and put his hands into a steeple. "I will wager one hundred and fifty dollars that the children have kept the house in fine condition and that nothing has gone awry. If I am wrong, each of you will be paid that amount as a bonus to your paychecks. If I am correct, Nightcrawler will pay that sum out of his pay for the next six paychecks."

"Huh?!" Kurt swiveled his head to look at him. "Why?!"

"I do not approve of gambling."

Kurt snickered sarcastically and almost hoped the house had been blown apart.

As they approached the home, they gasped as they saw the iron shutters lifting off of the windows and the weapons on the front lawn disarming. "What happened?!" Rogue cried. Kitty screamed as she looked at the ruins of one of the trees on the lawn.

"Catty," whispered Kurt with a strained voice. As Jean finally opened her eyes and looked out of the window, she let out a choked gasp.

"Scott, Johnny…"

"I'm sure he's okay, John's a resourceful kid."

"They're all fine," the Professor smiled. "And I do believe that Aaron will be sharing a room with your nephew, Forge."

Forge smiled and nodded. "Great. That's really great."

…………………….

The adults stood while the children sat on the couches in the chaotic looking living room. Aaron and Tyler had just finished explaining everything, and to save Catty the lecture, he had left out the part about her being alone in the danger room. Ben played along wonderfully to his story that Ben had been in the observatory and had gotten out in time to help Steven and Tara in the main foyer.

When Xavier and his X-Men left to discuss the night's events, Johnny being dragged along to be put to bed, the members of Mission X sat across from Tyler in almost the exact way they had that morning. Tyler glanced around at them all. "So… I guess I'll be leaving with Uncle Forge tomorrow."

"No way," Catty smiled.

"Yeah, you're totally staying," Tara added with a bit of a giggle, tilting her head flirtatiously. Aaron almost growled but smiled instead.

"Really?" Tie looked at Aaron as he got up and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Welcome to the team, Wartech, man," He said. "Welcome to Mission X."

………………..

"So what happened, Professor?"

Xavier looked up at Cyclops and his X-Men with a look of near exhaustion.

"Tonight's mission was a complete decoy, set up by Magneto," He said softly. "He has the data files on the children. But, I do not think he has any interest in recruiting them any longer."

"Why not?" Asked Kitty. "Isn't that, like, why he wanted the files in the first place?"

Xavier frowned. "I believe he has a new team of his own."

NEXT: Angels


	6. Angels

Hello followers! Here is Episode 6 in my ongoing series! I am happy that you like my characters and there are two more members of Mission X plus the bad guys to introduce, so here you go. I do not own the X-Men, but this thing is chock full of OCs.

Episode 6: Angels

Lightning crashed and lit the institute's halls like a fire in the late night sky. Thunder was the darkness's drum, warning everyone that it meant business. The rain beat down on the roof and windows, trying with all of its might to get into the mansion.

And over all of this, Catty dozed in front of an Errol Flynn movie.

Errol Flynn was a habit she picked up from her father, along with watching them at three in the morning. Yawning, she ate another spoonful of ice cream from the tub and wished something exiting would happen.

The doorbell rang with perfect timing to that thought, causing her to jump and drop her spoon. Hitting pause, she got up and inched her way to the door. Anyone ringing the doorbell at three in the morning was a force to be reckoned with, especially during a late summer storm like this. Putting a hand on the doorknob, she slowly turned and then quickly yanked open the door, hoping to startle whoever it was. Even with her image inducer on, she was kind of fearsome looking.

Lightning flashed at almost the exact same time, causing her to jump backward and let out a little shriek. So much for the startle idea. But her eyes adjusted to the sudden flash of light, and the only person there was a small, wet, shivering thirteen-year-old girl. Blinking, Catty stepped forward. The girl's hair was shoulder-length and dark brown, maybe shorter and lighter when dry, and she was incredibly pale wrapped in her dark red bundles of jackets and sweaters. Her eyes were the most stunning thing about her. They were a beautiful crystal clear blue, and somehow they seemed frighteningly and chillingly familiar as though she lived with someone who had the same eyes.

"Can I come in?" The girl cried over the thunder and rain.

Catty took her hand and pulled her in, closing the door behind her. The girl was shaking like crazy and Catty wrapped her up in one of the blankets on the couch.

"Honey, what happened?" She asked softly as she sat the girl down on the sofa.

"My name is Alaina," she said in a shaky, quiet voice. "My mother told me to come here. She said it would be safe."

"Alaina, that's a pretty name," She smiled and touched the little girl's cheek. "I'll be right back with some towels and some hot chocolate, don't you move!"

She teleported and grabbed some towels from the hall closet, rapping on doors as she went. When she got back down to the kitchen to make the hot chocolate, she could hear people moving around upstairs. When Tara appeared, Catty grabbed her shoulder. "Tara, get some clothes, some stuff you grew out of this year. Warm ones."

"Like, why?" Tara asked groggily.

"Just go." Mug and towels in hand, Catty went back to the living room. Alaina had hit play and was watching the movie, looking like a china doll with glass eyes, perfectly still.

"Alaina?" Catty whispered. "Here you go, sweetie. Hot Chocolate. Let's get you out of those wet jackets, okay? My friend Tara's getting you some warm clothes. Are you okay?"

Alaina nodded, smiling a tiny smile.

……………………..

"Where did you come from, Alaina?"

Xavier sat across from the girl, looking as gentle and warm as a loving father. The members of Mission X, Rogue, Johnny, Scott and Jean stood around the room, trading whispers and yawns. Johnny seemed to be falling asleep standing up, leaning on his mother.

"My mom said it would be safe here," She said again.

"Safe from what?"

"I don't know, a man," Alaina looked at her feet. "A big man."

Catty was looking at the professor's eyes. Glancing back at Alaina, she realized that they were the same. She grabbed Steven's shoulder and pointed it out. Steven jumped, then nodded.

"Who is your mother?"

Suddenly, a Bamfing noise made everyone jump. Kurt had appeared next to Scott, responding to the call made by Catty. He looked around and grinned. "Good morning!" He was greeted with groans.

"My… my mother?" Alaina stuttered, recovering from the shock.

"Yes, who sent you here?"

"My mother's name is Raven, Raven Darkholme."

Kurt jumped. "What? Who did you just say?"

"You heard her," Xavier put his hands together. "So. Mystique is a part of this."

"She told me to find my father," The girl began to twist a towel with her fingers. "My father would keep me safe from what happened to her other children."

Rogue and Kurt exchanged glances.

"She didn't want the big man to hurt me, and she didn't want me to be in a place that wasn't safe. She said my father would help me."

"Who is your father?" Catty asked shakily. She knew the answer already, but she couldn't understand how it was possible.

Alaina lifted a single, pale finger at Xavier just as Logan walked in.

"What's goin' on?" He asked gruffly as he opened his beer with a claw.

…………………….

"Cloning. How very clever of you, doctor." Magneto put his hands behind his back turned to face the hooded man in the shadows.

"Do you like your two new pets, my friend?" The Doctor asked in a wispy, scratchy voice that made Magneto's blood run cold.

"Is it true you made something without my knowledge?" Magneto took a step forward. "An exact replica of Charles Xavier, for that witch Mystique?"

"Not an exact replica."

"What is it, then?"

"Any genetic material that I could not obtain from him I got from Mystique," The Doctor let out a harsh laugh. "Now it is as though Xavier and Darkholme had a child together, a living breathing child created by ME."

"What is her mutant ability?"

"That was something I could not replicate, so I took a piece of Mystique's X-gene and copied it's structure," He said. "The girl can change into any living creature as long as she has absorbed it's DNA, barring plants and such. That means mammals, reptiles, insects and creatures of the sea. Birds, even humans with some strain to her gene matrix. Obtaining human DNA is harmful to her and she knows this."

"This girl is powerful," Magneto smiled. "Where is she, let me get a look at her. She can be number five in my…"

"I apologize, but Mystique has taken her away under the delusion that she is her child," The Doctor smiled under his dark hood. "I'm afraid the woman is mentally instable and has sent the girl to Xavier."

Magneto crushed the pen in his hand. "WHAT?!"

"On the bight side, you still have Blackangel, Nightshade, and your grandchildren on your little team," The Doctor moved out of the shadows. "You still have not paid me for my generous contribution to your cause. Blackangel and Nightshade are two of my greatest creations, both believing themselves to be real people under the names of Michael and Kish. I expect hefty payment."

"And you will get it, as soon as I see these things in action," Magneto put the crushed pen on the desk. "Goodbye, friend."

"I will be seeing you later, I presume?"

"Oh, yes," He said quietly as he walked out. "If these two work as planned, I will be wanting more of them."

……………………

Xavier was baffled by the girl who called herself his daughter. He had never been with Mystique, and in fact had not seen her in fifteen some-odd years. The only answer was cloning, but who would do this?

The alarms went off suddenly, making him turn. He looked at the monitors for the security cameras and frowned. Four unknown people were moving around on the lawn.

"Switch. Gather a team of four and go out to the lawn. Quickly," He said over Catty's intercom.

"Yes sir," She responded from the danger room. She had been examining Alaina's powers in action. She had transformed, so far, into a six-foot tiger, a large hawk, and an eight-foot grizzly, all with the same cool blue eyes. "Okay, Alaina, it's showtime. I want you, and I want Aaron and Tyler. Let's go, there's a few bogies to take care of on the lawn. For now, you should be called Shifter. Aaron is Windstrider, I'm Switch and Tyler is Wartech."

Alaina nodded nervously as they ran to greet the intruders. As they stepped outside, they saw four mutants.

The one that appeared to be the leader was tall, with brown hair and blue eyes, standing like he owned the world and everything in it. A magnetic pulse seemed to ebb off of him. The girl next to him was a bit shorter but was his twin in facial features, with long silver hair to her waist and the same chilling blue eyes. One had a normal appearance save for his blue tail, pointed ears and fangs, and he wielded a sword in his pale hands. The last was as frightening as can be, with huge black wings, dark hair and eyes, and almost death-white skin.

"Alright, let's show 'em what we're made of!" Catty shouted, leaping forward. She locked swords with the other weapon-carrier. He grinned and twisted his blade, knocking her back.

"Hi, I'm Nightshade, and I'll be your guide for the day," He said, laughing and grabbing her. "ANYwhere within a two mile radius is your grand destination." Teleporting her, he dropped her on the ground surrounded by trees. "Sorry there isn't an in-bamf snack. Enjoy!"

Meanwhile, Alaina in Tiger form swatted at the Blackangel, who was laughing at her. "Here, kitty, kitty," He said in a dark voice. A shadow suddenly appeared under her, startling her enough to change back into herself. Blackangel slipped through his own shadow and reappeared next to her, leaping out of her shadow. Surprising her further, he kissed her on the cheek, whispering, "You're a pretty little kitty." She suddenly realized she was bound to the ground with dark energy.

Aaron blasted a gust of wind at the leader. "Call me Magnus," The arrogant looking boy said as the wind bended around him. He sent a magnetic blast at Aaron, knocking him to the ground. Magnus placed a foot on Aaron's chest. "I'm you're worst nightmare, tough guy. Go on, keep struggling."

Tyler pressed a button on his metallic arm and an energy shield appeared around him, blocking the blue blast from the silver haired girl. "What do they call you, sweetie?" He asked sarcastically as he shot at her with his proton cannon.

"They call me…" She said softly as she took a step through the blast and disappeared, suddenly appearing next to Tyler, so close he could feel her breath on his ear. "…Ghost Moon." She swung a punch right into his jaw, knocking him out with a frightened yell and toppling him to the ground.

"Alright, first try!" Shouted Nightshade, also known as Kish, pumping a fist into the air.

"Let's go," Said Ghost Moon. "I hear them stirring."

"Great job, Luna," Magnus put an arm around his twin sister's shoulders. "You're right, we should go. Come on, Mike."

Blackangel ignored Isaac and looked down at Alaina, who had stopped struggling against the dark energy and was looking up at him.

"Come ON, Mike. That's an order!"

"I'm coming," he whispered. "See you later, pretty kitty."

He walked over to the other three as they touched Kish and disappeared with a Bamf. Catty reappeared right after they left, feeling her throat close up and holding back the tears.

"We got creamed."

NEXT: Bayville High!


	7. Bayville High

Second story written and posted today, I'm a little proud of myself. You guys really jumped all over Angels as soon as I put it up. Here is a story I think you'll all enjoy.

Episode 7: Bayville High

Alaina and Ben sat across from each other, both eating an early breakfast. Suddenly, they both looked up and stared at each other.

"First week of school," Alaina said softly to her only companion.

_I'm going into fifth grade this year, but I'm home schooled._ Ben took a bite of his cereal. _The Professor agreed to let me study here because of the stairs and my talking._

"The stairs?" Alaina asked, tilting her head. "I've noticed you don't use them. Why not?"

_I don't know, I just don't like stairs very much,_ He replied, stirring his cereal. The corn flakes were transforming into corn mush. He shook off the memory of the screaming woman and the narrow stairwell.

"Well, I'm going into seventh," Said Alaina. "I guess I'm all alone, huh?"

_Tara and Catty are in ninth grade, Steven and Tyler are in tenth, and Aaron is in eleventh,_ Ben counted off his teammates on his fingers as he listed them. _So, yeah. They're all going to the high school._

"And I'm stuck in middle school," Alaina sighed. "Oh, well. I was hoping one of you guys was gunna be there with me."

_You'll make friends._

"You think so?"

_I know so._

She smiled at him as Catty and Steven walked in, talking about their new school supplies. Catty was already wearing her image inducer. "Good morning, you guys," Alaina said sweetly.

"Good morning," Catty mumbled as she sat down. It had been a week and a half, and she still hadn't gotten over her humiliating defeat by Magneto's new Brotherhood. Steven smiled weakly and waved. At this point, Steven was the only one who still listened to her laments and play-by-plays.

Aaron ran into the room and grabbed the last pop tart, followed by Tara. "Aw, man!" She sighed.

"Too slow!" He shouted with his mouth full. "But here. You take half."

"No_thank_ you," Tara growled as she sat down. "God, I am so nervous about Bayville High."

"Not me!" Aaron laughed as he plopped down next to her.

"You've already been there," Catty said. "For me and Tara, the idea of high school is a little scary."

"We'll look after you, won't we, Steve?" Aaron punched Steven in the shoulder. "Don't you worry about a thing, Blondie. You too, Blue."

Steven rubbed his shoulder.

Tyler slumped in, yawning loudly. "I am so not a morning person," He moaned and sat down.

"Here," Tara immediately perked up and handed him the cereal box with a tilt of her head and a sweet smile. Aaron let out a low growl only noticed by Steven. Aaron and Tyler were friends, but no one could deny that Tara was a huge weak spot in their friendship.

Xavier rolled in and smiled at his seven students. "Good morning, Mission X. Today is your first day at public school as mutants and as members of a team. There are a few rules I have to go over." The students groaned. Xavier went on, ignoring them. "There will be no intentional power usage on school grounds. There will be no showing off in school. Also, I have checked the database and all of Magneto's new students are enrolled. There will be no attacking them."

"What if they attack us first?" Catty snarled, hands forming fists.

"Be wary of held grudges, Tabitha," Xavier looked at her. "They cloud judgment and cause errors to occur."

"Yes, sir," She said quietly, loosening her fingers.

"So you will know them, Magnus and Ghost Moon are enrolled as Isaac and Luna Maximoff. They are Pietro's children, and I do not know who their mother is. Blackangel is Michael Hart, from a boarding school in Massachusetts. And Kish… well, Catty, this is mildly interesting, there is a Kish Darkholme here."

"Nightshade?" Catty said quietly.

"Yes, that is his codename. But here it says he's an orphan who was raised in New York City. Try to get some information, he may know something about Alaina and how she came to be."

Catty nodded.

"Is everyone clear on the rules?"

Mission X stood. "We're ready," Aaron grinned. "We're ready for anything."

…………………..

"Dude, I was not ready for this," Aaron moaned as he looked down at his lunch tray. On it was a frozen bit of meat swimming in a reddish brown gravy.

"I think mine is still breathing," Tyler laughed, stabbing his loaf to death.

"Is the gravy blood or something?" Tara winced as she poked at the sauce and it jiggled like jell-o.

"It's a mystery," Steven wrinkled his nose at the vegetables. "I don't even think these are green beans. They sorta look like rubber."

Catty pointed at Steven. "I wouldn't drink that milk if I were you."

"Why not?" He said, turning the carton around. "Oh, man! This milk expired last year!"

Aaron and Tyler both spat out a jet of milk that they had just drunk.

Catty suddenly noticed a girl sitting alone at the other end of the cafeteria. She was wearing a really tacky knitted hat, a huge knitted sweater, and a worn out pair of jeans. Her hair was all tucked into the sweater and cap, but the tiny bit she did see was a dark, navy blue.

"I'll be right back," She said softly to Steven. He nodded and continued to laugh at Aaron's sputtering noises. Halfway there, she bumped into Kish.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" She shouted.

"S-sorry," He said. "Hey, listen, I just wanted to call a kind of truce between our groups? While we're at school, I mean." Catty was amazed by his remarkable resemblance to her father. "I just don't want any trouble here at the school."

"Right. You were heading over to that girl, weren't you?"

"Yeah, I was." He nodded. "You were, too, weren't you?"

"Yup."

"Let's say we don't have a truce."

"Let's!" She shouted, bounding for the table. Kish was right on her heels. They both reached the table at the same time and jumped into seats, immediately starting to talk over each other. The girl just stared at them fighting over who was going to talk to her for a minute, shrugged, and left. When Catty and Kish finally looked up, they both gasped.

"Where'd she go?" Kish asked, his voice cracking severely at the end of his sentence.

"Great, you scared her," Catty growled.

"I did not," Kish began to look around the cafeteria for her. "She's a mutant named Sara, that's all I know."

"Did Maggie tell you that?"

"Did_who_?"

"Never mind."

They both stared at each other and laughed. "Okay, so the first person who talks to her gets to try and recruit her, right?" Asked Kish.

"Yeah, I guess."

"See you."

Kish got up and walked away, waving as he went. Catty saw his image inducer and smiled. He was nervous enough about his ears and tail to hide behind a hologram.

………………….

"This is such a nightmare," Alaina groaned, looking back at her map of the school. She couldn't find her math class anywhere and she was ten minutes late. "22B, 22B, wherefore art thou 22B…" She muttered to herself, staring at the map as she walked down the hall way. She ran right into another girl, who went sprawling backwards.

"Omigosh, I am so sorry!" Alaina squealed, helping her up. The girl was pretty, with curly blonde hair and yellowish green eyes. "Did I hurt you?"

"No, no, I'm fine," She said with a heavy British accent. " I wasn't watching where I was walking."

"Me neither," Alaina giggled. "Hey, are you lost, too?"

"Yeah, I'm new here, a foreign exchange student," She held out her hand to shake. "I'm Becka."

"I'm Alaina, nice to meet you," she said, shaking hands with the other girl.

"Any chance you know where 22B is?"

"No, but I'm looking for it." Alaina took Becka's schedule and looked at it. "Hey! We have all the same classes!"

"We do not!" Becka took it back. "Oh, wow, we do!"

"How cool is that?"

"Well, now that we're lost together, we should be okay," Becka smiled.

"Being lost together is definitely better than being lost alone."

……………………….

Johnny was having a horrible time.

Third grade was so much harder than second grade on so many levels he couldn't count them all. On top of that, he had already woken up in a bad mood. He had been depressed for a while because he didn't have any powers. His mom told him to be patient, but he didn't want to wait anymore. Why hadn't he been born earlier so he could be on Mission X with Tyler and Steven and Aaron? They were so cool and they had powers. He wanted to be them. He wanted to be his dad, leader of the X-Men.

Johnny thought that he would NEVER know what it's like to be leader of the X-Men, a hero. Right now he knew what it was like to be a loser.

……………………..

It was Aaron that wound up talking to Sara, unaware of Catty and Kish's agreement. He sat next to her in art class and looked over at her sketch book.

"Um, wow. Those are really good," He said, pointing at her trees.

"Thanks," she said, smiling and blushing. She took off her hat and a curtain of blue hair fell out of it. Aaron's jaw dropped, reaching up to feel his own green hair. "I love to draw. It's a gift."

"I'll say," Aaron mumbled, still looking at the girl's beautiful hair. Snapping himself out of it, he looked at her sketchbook as she turned the pages.

"I have an eidetic memory," She said. "I draw everything I see, and it gets imprinted on my memory. My mom said I have natural talent. See?"

"Wow," He said, looking at a page covered by a shady image of a woman knitting.

"That's my mom. She died a year ago."

"Oh. I'm sorry," He said softly. "Did she make your hat and sweater?"

Sara nodded.

"I'm Aaron."

"Sara. It's nice to meet you, Aaron."

Aaron looked at his desk in confusion. This girl business used to be easy. Now it was driving him nuts. Maybe he should like Sara. After all… He glanced at Tyler and looked back down at his work. Tara wasn't interested, anyway.

"You want to come over some time? To the institute, I mean, where I live."

"Sure!" Sara smiled brightly. "I've always wanted to meet Charles Xavier! I am a huge fan. My mom worked with him once on a genetic experiment. I'm a mutant, you know. Are you a mutant, Aaron?"

Aaron was shocked by her straightforwardness and honesty. He nodded. "That means it's a good thing you're coming," He said. "We can help you out, you could come live with us."

"And get out of the orphanage?" Sara nodded enthusiastically. She really was sweet, unlike Catty or Tara, who both had a mean streak. "Sounds great!"

"Okay then, I'll drive you there after school."

"You can drive? You have a car?"

"Yeah." Aaron switched into stud mode, leaning back and grinning. "Sure I do."

……………….

Tara looked for Aaron's car desperately. She needed a ride home and Catty had already left with Steven and Tie. Suddenly, she saw his forest green convertible and started to wave when she almost fainted. Aaron was opening the passenger side door for a sixteen year old girl with beautiful long blue hair. Her ugly sweater didn't hide how well endowed she was compared to Tara. She watched her get in the car and then she watched Aaron get in, slipping an arm around her and driving of, steering with only one hand. She watched even after the car was gone. Tara suddenly realized she was crying and sniffling like a little kid. Quickly contorting her face from upset to pissed off, she went in search of a different ride. Maybe she should like Tyler. After all, Aaron wasn't interested, anyway.

NEXT: Swordflash and Mirror


	8. Swordflash and Mirror

Yahoo! The Mission X community is up at last. Now everyone can write and post Mission X or other future fanfics and we can all share them! So far two people have accepted my staff invite, the amazing Frodosarraw and the so far elusive GhostByNumber! Thank you everyone for your support. Please remember, I do have a forum for any and all questions and requests pertaining to Mission X.

Episode 8: Swordflash and Mirror

"Wow! This place is… um, wow!" Sara put her hands together in delight. "Is this where you train?"

Aaron smiled at her and then looked at the Professor. "Yeah, this is it. Do you really like it?"

"Oh my gosh, yes!" She giggled happily. "I've never had a big place like this to train before."

"What exactly do you do?" Kurt asked. He'd been asking that question for the better part of an hour, and still Sara had been elusive on the subject, shying away and talking about something else. This time, however, she picked up a sword off of the weapons wall and weighed it.

"The balance of this one is almost perfect," she whispered. "It's so much better than the one I have at home."

"You have a sword?" Aaron said, suddenly rethinking his choice of girls. If she owned a sword just for kicks, she might be a nut.

"Yeah, it belonged to my father. When he died he left it to me." She started playfully swinging the sword in arching waves, creating sounds in the air like a flute. "I was two when he died. I've been learning how to use it ever since."

"So you know how to use that?" Kurt said, picking up another sword.

"Yeah-huh."

"Show me."

Watching them spar was like watching professional dancers, or watching a tight rope walker, or seeing dolphins swim. It was truly amazing for Aaron to just sit there and see every twist and bend of that acrobatic master, and that beautiful girl who had taken off her sweater and was wearing a tank top underneath. She really was beautiful, and Aaron was hooked. Who needed that spunky, fiery little Tara anyway?

But for some reason, thinking about Tara made his chest hurt.

………………..

Tara was still walking home when a car drove up next to her. The window rolled down and she looked in. "Need a ride, princess?"

"Daddy!" She shrieked, hugging his neck while leaning into the window. "Oh, I missed you! You know if mom saw you here she'd kill you."

"I know," Lance said softly. "Get in; I want to show you something."

She jumped into the passenger seat and hugged him again. Lance turned the car around and started driving back to the school. "Where are we going?" She asked, looking up at him.

"The place I used to live. It's the brotherhood house. Magneto's new recruits are going to move in there, but someone is already hiding out in it. I need you to go in there with me and find out who's been living in there for ten years."

"Someone's been living in there alone for ten years?"

"Yeah, that's what Magneto says. I personally thing it's a dog or a cat or something, but he wants me to check it out anyway. I saw you and thought maybe you'd like to come along, spend some time with your old man."

"Sure!" Tara grinned happily. She almost never got to spend any time with her father. She would always love him, no matter what side he was on.

"So," Lance smiled and looked at her. "Let's catch up. Are you making friends?"

"Oh yeah, lots," She said. "So far Catty is my best friend, but Alaina might get close to that. See, Catty and I have, like, nothing in common, but for some reason we're so compatible, it's bizarre. Alaina's really sweet, but she's kinda weird, y'know?"

"You sound just like your mother," Lance laughed. "You're just a little carbon copy of her. You're nothing like me, are you?"

"No way, I'm plenty like you!" Tara cried. "I think I'm more like you than I am like her!"

"That's not necessarily a good thing, sweetheart," Lance said quietly. Tara stopped talking and looked at his sad face. "I don't really want you to be like me, Tara. I am not a good person, do you understand me? That's why I left, so I wouldn't watch you become me. You're better off with your mother. She's an amazing good person and you're just like her. Don't be ashamed of that."

"If you know you're a bad person, then why don't you change?" Tara looked at her feet, then out the window. "Come live with us. We'll protect you from Magneto." She already knew what his answer was going to be. They'd had this conversation a hundred times before since she was six years old.

"I can't do that. I know I'm a bad person, but I believe in what me and Magneto stand for. I don't want you mixed up in that."

"Well," she whispered, hugging his arm and leaning her head on his shoulder. "_I_ think you're a good person, daddy."

Lance smiled. Sixteen years ago, her mother had said the same thing.

……………..

"Alright! Alright, you win," Kurt heaved and dropped his sword. "Boy, I'm way too old for this."

"No way! The amazing Nightcrawler, Kurt Wagner, swordsman of the decade, got bested by a mere _student_?" Sara laughed as she got back into a defensive pose. "Come on! One more round!"

"No, I really can't," Kurt said wearily as he sat down, clutching his side. "This is weird. Man, this feels really weird."

"You're finally tired," Aaron laughed. "I've never seen that before."

The Professor rolled his way over and put a hand on Kurt's shoulder. "Have you been eating better, the way Doctor McCoy told you to?" He asked in a stern, parental voice.

"That's bull, Professor," Kurt laughed. "I don't have to change the way I eat. My metabolism just burns up all the burgers and candy and stuff."

"Kurt, you're in your thirty's and you still eat like a teenager," Xavier moved his hand and began to roll away. "One day, you will regret not listening to Henry."

……………………….

"Do you have any boyfriends?" Lance decided to talk to Tara about something her mother always loved to talk about- cute boys. But instead of cheering up, she seemed to shrink further into her seat. "Tara?"

"I don't know," She sniffled. "I really like this boy named Tyler, because he's cute and all? But… there's this other boy…"

"Let me guess, that green haired loudmouth?"

"Yeah. His name is Aaron. He breaks my heart every day and he, like, doesn't even know it. And now I don't even have a chance in the world, not with that girl in the way."

"What girl?" Lance asked, slightly confused. Was there another recruit they didn't know about? Catty wasn't his type and Alaina was too young.

"That girl I saw him drive home with," Tara snuffled. "With the blue hair and probably a bigger bra than me. She's sixteen, what chance do I have?" She sighed. "I'm just a stupid little kid. I don't know what I'm doing, and with my luck, she does."

"That stupid Kish," Lance suddenly growled.

"What?"

"Nothing." Sara had been picked up by Mission X, which meant that Nightshade failed in his mission. He knew Magneto should have told Blackangel to do it.

……………..

Currently, Mike was already busy with something else. Sitting in a tree on the institute grounds, he watched Alaina clean her room and chat happily on the phone with another girl from school. He just liked to watch her, how sweet her little smile was. It made him happy for some reason, like they had a connection he didn't know about. It was the same thing with his best friend, Kish. Why he hung out with that giant goof ball dumb ass he never would know. Kish couldn't take anything seriously, not even his only mission all week. He had watched Sara go into the mansion with the Windstrider, which meant Kish had screwed up.

Alaina went to open her window and Mike ducked out of sight. His wings folded carefully across his back, he watched her struggle with the window latch. Smiling, he reached out to the shadow of the flower pot near the window sill. Using it, he unlatched the window when Alaina had turned away. When she heard the click she whirled around and touched it. She yanked open the window and looked out and around. When she didn't see anyone, she leaned her arms on the sill. "Yeah, sure, Becka. I'll call you after dinner, okay?"

Mike watched her flop down onto her bed and she smiled. At least she was happy where she was, even if it meant sneaking around like this just to see her smile like that.

……………………

Lance broke the lock on the brotherhood house door and they went inside. The house was surprisingly still in pretty good condition, but something was wrong. The place was clean and free of dust. He didn't smell the empty house smell, the mildew or the mice. Everything was neat and tidy, even cleaner than the brotherhood boys had left it.

"Didn't you say this place was abandoned?" Tara asked as she wiped her hand across the dust free coffee table top.

"I thought it was. And unless a dog or a cat suddenly got the urge to clean house," Lance looked at the blankets on the slept-in couch. "A person lives here."

Suddenly, a piece of sharp glass flew right by Lance's face and embedded itself into the wall with a thud.

"Get out, or I won't miss next time." Lance and Tara looked around at the speaker. It was a fifteen of sixteen year old boy with scruffy looking blonde hair and bright brown eyes, pointing his wrist at them. Tara almost laughed at this seemingly stupid gesture until she saw a glass blade protruding from said wrist. "I mean it! Get out of here!"

"Listen, kid, we aren't here to hurt you…" Lance began to hold a hand out, but the boy shook his wrist at him threateningly. "What's your name?"

"Adam West," He scoffed. "None of your business, smart guy!" Lance and Tara looked at each other in amusement. "Hey, for all you know I _could_ be Adam West!"

"Aren't you a bit short, Adam?" Lance asked with a grin. "C'mon, kid."

He looked from Lance to Tara in confusion. These people weren't scared of him like everyone else was.

"We're mutants, too," said Tara. "Come on, put the… erm… blade away."

He slowly lowered his arm and the glass shrank back into his wrist. "I'm Manny," He said quietly. "I just needed a place to stay."

"Hey, you can stay here," Lance grinned. Kish's mistake could be covered up. "What's your _real_ name, Manny?"

"Mirror," The boy replied quickly. "My name is Mirror."

"Welcome to the brotherhood, Mirror."

Tara looked up at her father in amazement. This is what he wanted her there for? A recruitment mission for the other side? She turned on her heel and stormed out. "Wait, Tara!" she heard him call. She ignored him.

……………….

Kurt fixed himself a sandwich and sat down across from Catty and Sara. "So, you remember everything you see or hear?"

"Yes," Sara took a bite from her own sandwich. "I'm a living encyclopedia. I can recite every book I've ever read, every movie I've ever watched, every conversation I've ever heard."

"Wow," said Catty.

"Yeah," Sara said. "It's a bit of a hassle sometimes."

Catty looked up and saw her father leaning back in his chair with his eyes closed, breathing slowly. "Dad? You okay?"

"Yeah…" He muttered. "Fine…"

"Daddy, what's wrong?" Catty stood and went to him, touching his shoulder.

"My arm…" He whispered. Suddenly, he heaved and took a huge breath, eyes wide.

"Daddy?" Catty jumped back. "Daddy?!"

NEXT: Arrival!


	9. The Arrival

Hello again! This story is really important to me, because I am finally fully introducing "The Doctor"- the man who created Shifter, Nightshade and Blackangel.

Episode 9: The Arrival

_Kurt felt like he was floating. He was floating in orange water, and for some reason, the water allowed him to breathe. When he realized he was floating in water, he reached out his fingertips and touched glass. He didn't know where he was, or how he got there. And for some strange reason, he didn't even know who he was. Pressing both hands against the glass, he could see that his hands were normal, pale and five-fingered, and somehow he knew that was wrong. He could see a room outside the glass, but it was too dark. He was supposed to be able to see in the dark. _

_He finally saw the blurry image of a cloaked man standing very close to the glass. "Can you hear me?" He asked the man, and the man nodded. "Who am I?"_

_"You are Kish," The man said. "And you were badly hurt. Are you feeling better?"_

_"Um, yes?" Kish said softly. He had thought his name was Kurt, but why? "I guess so, but…"_

_"Your name is Kish Darkholme, and you lived with your foster family in New York City until the car accident that killed them and injured you," the hooded man's voice was bone-chilling and sounded like nails on a chalkboard. "You hurt your head pretty badly, and you might not remember."_

_Kish touched his head and felt a large cut. "I can feel it…" he whispered. "My… my foster parents are…"_

_"They are dead, my child," the man had no sympathy in his voice. "I am sorry, if only things were different."_

_Kish could feel tears on his cheeks, but he knew the hooded man could not see them. After all, he was floating in water. He didn't even know his family… and now they were gone._

Kish woke up in a state of panic, grasping around in the dark for something he couldn't put his finger on. He only wound up with a fistful of Mike's feathers, and then he heard Mike waking up. "What the—Kish! What the hell, man?"

"Sorry…" He whispered. He even sounded depressed to himself.

"Hey…" Mike reached in the dark and found Kish's hand. "What's wrong?"

"Bad dream," Kish sat up and turned on the light. Sleeping on the floor until the bedrooms were done was bad enough, but they were sleeping in the basement, with a cold cement floor and cobwebs and God knew what else, but that was okay for Kish. Mike had learned that Kish could sleep anywhere and eat anything. "Do you remember the Doctor? The hooded man who introduced us?"

"Yeah."

"How did you meet him?"

"He found me on the side of the road. I had been hitchhiking to California when I collapsed from heat exhaustion. He picked me up and took me to his lab." Mike looked at him with concern. "Why do you ask?"

"Are you sure that actually happened?" Kish fluffed his pillow and began to twist his tail into a knot. "I mean, do you remember anything before all of that?"

"Yeah, I…" Mike started, then stopped abruptly, thinking. He _didn't_ remember anything before waking up in the Doctor's lab. "No. No, I don't."

"Me neither," Kish muttered, lying back down. "Not even what my foster parents looked like. Do you think that it's just a coincidence?"

"I don't believe in coincidences," Mike pulled his knees close to his chest and put his chin on his knees. "Maybe our minds have been wiped. You know, like by a telepath or something."

Kish yawned. "Maybe."

"Yeah." Mike looked out the tiny window. "You go back to sleep. I'm going for a quick fly."

"'Bye," Kish yawned again and closed his eyes.

…………………..

Catty was extremely worried.

She was sitting in the infirmary, waiting to hear news about her father, waiting for her mom to show up, waiting for Tara to come home, just plain waiting. Tara hadn't come home from school and it was ten thirty at night, not past curfew but she could have at least told someone where she was going. She had called her mom's cell phone seven times, and each time she had promised to be there in five minutes. I had been hours. She said she was caught up at work, but dad was sick. Why wouldn't she drop whatever she was doing and see if he was okay?

The door opened, and she looked up, not sure whether she wanted it to be Tara or Amanda. It was neither. Steven walked in and sat next to her. "Um… is he okay?"

"I don't know yet," Catty whispered.

"Are _you_ okay?"

"I don't know yet."

They sat in full silence for a few minutes. Steven kept on looking at her worriedly, as if when he stopped watching her she would blow up. Eventually, Catty looked up, too, and saw him look down. "What?" She asked softly, with a bit of a smile.

"Nothing," He mumbled quickly. "Just worried about you. I wish you'd just tell me you're okay so I can go to bed."

"What, you don't want to sit with me and wait for my dad to learn that fruits and vegetables are good for him?" Catty looked at him, this time fully smiling.

"Oh, no. That'll take forever," Steven finally allowed himself to smile at her.

"Wow," She said.

"What?"

"You're kind of cute when you do that." She tilted her head. "What a change!"

"Huh?" Steven looked away and immediately stopped smiling. "I don't know what you're talking about.

"You are just so clueless," Catty folded her arms and concentrated on the wall.

"Well, you're incredibly rude," Steven retorted. "And bossy, and loud, and you have a big mouth."

"And you don't have a mouth," Catty looked at him again, this time angry. "Sorry, I don't go for the strong silent type."

"You don't go for any type!" Steven, for the first time in his life, had something to say to someone. "I bet you don't have time for guys. You're too busy being a stuck up team leader to notice."

"Well, smart one, do YOU have a type?" Catty relied hotly. "I've never seen you talk to a girl other than the girls on the team, not even for the time, and I will die of shock the day you ask one on a date."

"Good! Wanna go to the mall on Saturday?"

Catty looked at him in pure astonishment. "W-what?"

"I thought you were going to drop dead," He grinned slyly.

Amanda chose that moment to come rushing into the room. "Is he okay?!"

"We don't know yet," Catty and Steven said together. Catty was glad she had blue fur on her face—Steven couldn't see her blushing.

…………….

Alaina looked at her clock. Ten forty-five. Bed time had come and gone, and she still hadn't finished her reading assignment.

Maybe her mind was somewhere else. She just couldn't figure out where her mind was, exactly. Looking back down at her book, she sighed. She just couldn't figure out what was bothering her so much.

"Hey, pretty kitty."

She jumped and fell out of her chair, whipping her head around to look at the speaker. Blackangel was perched on a branch outside of her now open window.

"Omigosh, what are you doing here?" Alaina stood up and brushed herself off, blushing furiously when she realized she was in nothing but a tank top and boxer shorts.

"I just wanted to know if you would go flying with me," Mike smiled at her and climbed into the room. "Just for a little while. We both know what it's like to have the wind under our wings, right?"

Alaina stepped back. "I can't. I'm not dressed."

"Sure you are," He held out a hand. "Come on, like you need to be dressed to transform into a bird and come with me. Please?"

"I really can't…" Alaina looked away as he touched her shoulder. "Please go away, now. I have to finish my homework."

"You can finish when you get back," He said softly, pulling her to the window. "I want to fly with you. Let the girl I know is in there out. I want to fly with you."

Her entire face was warm as she looked up at him. "Okay. But just for a few minutes, okay?"

"Okay."

……………….

Tara was sitting at lookout point, seeing all of the night lights of Bayville from a completely different perspective. They weren't mankind's stars. They were just lights. Dad was wrong—humans didn't make stars of their own. Dad was wrong about everything.

She jumped when she heard a footstep behind her. Tyler sat next to her on the grass and looked out at the lights too. For a moment, he was quiet. Then he turned to look at her. "I was looking for you all afternoon."

"You were?" She sniffed.

"Yeah. I'm glad I found you. I was really getting worried." He reached over and wiped a tear off of her face. "What's the matter? You okay?"

"My father was wrong, wrong about everything," She moaned. "He used to tell me that whenever I felt sad, I should look at all of the lights in the town and think of them as Mankind's stars, and that they are reasons to go on." She looked up at him. "He was wrong. All I see are a bunch of stupid electric lights."

"He wasn't wrong," Tyler said. He held out his metal hand to her, but before she could touch it, it was glowing a light shade of blue. "Every light out there represents another person. Some of them are in pretty bad shape, people who seriously need help." He looked down. "My mom struggled to feed me until Uncle Forge came to help her out."

"And what are the other lights?"

"People like the Professor," He said. "people like Uncle Forge, and you. People who dedicate their whole lives to help other people who need them. The lights are the stars of Mankind. They're filled with hope, hope that the sun will rise." His metal had stopped glowing as she took it.

"That was really a very beautiful thing to say," She whispered.

"Tara…" Tyler looked at her again. "Can I kiss you?"

Somewhat, surprised, it took her a moment to respond. People usually didn't ask her, they just went ahead and did it. People like Aaron. She smiled and nodded. He kissed her, and for a moment she forgot the world existed, and she really believed that everything was actually alright in the long run.

……………..

Scott went to answer the door which, as per usual, was ringing at night when people should be sleeping. He opened the door and instead of another kid, a tall, pale man in a trench coat stood there. He certainly looked odd; it was as though his eyes had no whites, just pools of black. The man's hair was jet black and perfectly straight, hanging over his shoulders and only barely hiding his pointed ears. When the man held up his hand, the fingers were long and bone white like his face.

"I am here to help the one you call Maestro," He said in a voice that made Scott shiver. It sounded like a dying cat screeching one last time. "I am the Doctor. I have some answers to his questions."

_What questions?_ Scott and the Doctor looked around and Ben was stepping out of the elevator.

"My dear boy, don't you want to know where you came from?" the Doctor bowed slightly and held out a spindly hand. "I know the answers, Ben."

"Get out of here, you crazy freak," Scott snarled. "Ben, don't listen to him, go back to bed." He somehow knew not to trust this guy.

_But how do you know my—_

"Ben, go upstairs." Scott turned to face him. "Right now."

Ben scowled and ran back into the elevator, an angry feeling ebbing off of him.

"Listen, I don't know who you are, or what you want with Ben," Scott growled. "But whatever it is, you're not going to get it. Understand?"

"I understand perfectly," The Doctor hissed. "I will get to him anyway. He must know the truth."

Scott slammed the door shut and leaned against it, unsure that he had done the right thing. He didn't trust that man, and he didn't even know why.

…………….

Hank walked into the waiting room. "Kurt had a heart attack, but he's awake now, and he's going to be just fine."

"Can we see him?" Amanda and Catty stood up.

"Yes, but I don't want you exiting him." Hank turned. "This way, ladies."

Catty stopped and waited for her mom to leave. Then she turned to face Steven, who had stood up and was heading for the door.

"Steven, wait…" She said.

He looked at her with the strangest face she had ever seen on him, a mix between worry and arrogance. "What?"

She stood on tiptoe and kissed him on the cheek. "I'll go to the mall with you on Saturday."

"You will?" Steven asked, his voice cracking a little.

"Yeah."

She squealed as he suddenly grabbed her in a hug. Then she relaxed and let him hold her, enjoying his surprising amount of warmth. "Catty…" He said quietly. "I'll see you tomorrow." Then he let go and walked out, smiling at her as he closed the door.

She giggled and hoped she would see that smile a lot more often.

NEXT: Secrets


	10. Secrets

Sorry it's been such a while, I was really sick and I had to see a doctor. Thanks everybody for waiting. I'm really glad that all of you like the direction of my story. This episode kind of focuses on Ben with a little bit of Mike/Alaina, and we will get to see Aaron's reaction to the development in Tara and Tyler's relationship.

Episode 10: Secrets

Ben couldn't sleep. Not that he ever slept, but he couldn't lie still on his bed for eight hours staring at the ceiling as per usual. The Doctor's words rang through his head louder than a train flying by his ears. He repeated them in The Doctor's own voice with his powers. _Don't you want to know where you came from? I have the answers. I will get him. He must know the truth._

Now that he had the peace and quiet to think it over, he _did_ want to know where he came from. He knew that the Professor was hiding something from him, a crucial piece of information that would help him understand himself. Not that he was angry at the Professor about lying to him. He was infuriated. He hated liars, and the only way he knew he was lying was that odd feeling he got when the Professor told him that nothing had come from that session. He sighed to himself and went to the window, looking out at the cool blue night sky, cloud-free and full of stars. It held no beauty for Ben.

The only solution, he thought, was to run away. _Run where?_ He said softly.

_Run to me, my boy… _said a soft voice. Ben whirled around and saw no one. He had heard that voice before, but where? When? And most importantly… _who_?

…………………

"Hey, dudes. Has anyone seen…"Aaron was saying as he walked into the kitchen for breakfast. He stopped talking immediately, because Steven grabbed his shoulders and pushed him back out, closing the kitchen door behind him.

"Maybe we can grab breakfast at school, okay?" Steven smiled and began to pull him toward the front door.

"What? No way! The food at Bayville High is either burnt or still frozen. I'll take my chances with what's left in there."

"But you don't want to go _in_ there," Steven insisted, tugging on the wall that was Aaron. "Come on, let's just go."

"Yeah, I DO want to go in there," Aaron pulled his arm away.

"No, you DON'T," Steven grabbed his arm again.

They stared at each other, silent. Aaron grinned. "Are you under the delusion that you suddenly have the power to hypnotize me and I, just this once, am going to _listen_ to you?" Laughing, he turned and opened the kitchen door, and regretted it immediately. There was Tara, and there was Tyler. Acting like some sort of couple. Eating each other's food. Playing with each other's hair. GIGGLEING. KISSING.

He closed the door and turned to Steven in a fit of rage. "Why didn't you stop this?!"

"You wanted me to try?"

"Well, why didn't you stop ME?"

Steven looked at him incredulously and gaped. "I DID try to stop you. But I don't have hypnotism powers, REMEMBER?"

Aaron was breathing deep breaths and for some reason was asking for his mommy. Steven patted his shoulder and shook his head. "It's okay. It's okay, you can cry, let it all out."

"CRY?!" Aaron pushed him away. "Hell no, get me a phone! I'm calling an assassin!"

"An assassin?" He grabbed his friend's shirt and turned him around. "No, Aaron. No more assassins. Remember LAST time?"

"That was a joke and you know it! I wasn't going to murder the Professor, and I'm not going to murder them. It's just…" Aaron looked at his feet. "I… I really _liked_ her. I guess I… I don't know."

"Then why don't you tell her that instead of picking up beautiful sixteen year old girls with huge breasts and…"

"You boys really shouldn't talk behind my back," Sara said as she walked by them towards the kitchen. "Steven, good for you. Nice going!"

When she was gone, Aaron looked at Steven angrily. "What did she mean, 'nice going'?"

"I hooked up with Cat, no big deal."

"Oh my God, if you can get a date and I can't, I'm finished. Morning, Alaina." Aaron waved at her as she walked by, yawning and ignoring them. She had a tired face, but a huge smile that seemed to light up the living room. "What's her deal?"

"Long night of homework?" Steven shrugged.

……………………..

Kish knocked tentatively on Isaac's door. There was a crashing noise and the door opened a small crack, one angry blue eye poking out. "What do you want, almost-blue-boy?"

"I was just wondering if you knew where Mike was," Kish smiled weakly and looked into the room. "Is… is there someone in there?"

"No! And I don't know where Mike is! Go away!" Isaac slammed the door shut and Kish winced. Everyone was so mean to him, like he was just a little kid wandering through the house screwing up assignments. Sometimes it made him sad.

"Hi Kish!" Luna walked past him, waving. "What's up?"

"I can't find Mike anywhere… have you seen him?"

"Noooo… But I think he might have come inside from his fly a few minutes ago…" Luna smiled and waved again. "Tootles!"

Kish sighed again. Teleporting into the kitchen, he bumped headlong into Mike. "Hey! THERE you are! I've been looking all over for you!"

"Um… why?" Mike poured milk into his cereal and sat down. Manny was chattering away on a phone at the other end of the kitchen to someone he kept calling Mami.

"I was just worried, you were gone all night," Kish grabbed four pieces of toast and began to butter one of them. "I was hoping you hadn't gotten caught or killed."

"I can take care of myself," Mike said coolly. Then he blinked. "Wha… what are you doing?" Kish had spread butter on two slices of toast and was now stacking them with two slices of toast smothered in jam.

"Sandwich. It's good!" Kish mumbled with a full mouth. Mike grimaced.

"You really can eat everything, can't you?"

…………………

"Ben?" Catty called into Kurt's infirmary room. "Daddy, has Ben been…"

"Shh, I'm watching this," Kurt held up a hand as Catty sat down on the foot of his bed. He seemed very concentrated on the movie he was watching. "Back flip, crouch land, double leap…" he was mumbling. Catty realized he wasn't watching a movie at all, only an old video of himself and the X-Men fighting a sentinel when they were kids.

"Dad, are you training? In your condition?"

"I'm doing the best I can!" Kurt snapped, turning it off. "Now, what did you want, sweetie?"

Catty scooted away from him a little. Whatever medicine the doctor was giving him, it was causing weird mood swings. "I was just wondering if Ben had been in here to see you."

"No. I haven't seen him at all, actually," Kurt looked at the door. "All of your _other_ friends came to see me, but not him."

"Well, that's it. I've officially looked everywhere." Catty sighed dramatically and got up. "Well, if you see him…"

"Is he missing?" Kurt began to push himself up. "Should I be suiting up?"

No! You stay, I'LL go look for him," She pushed him back down gently. "Get some sleep, dad."

"I'm not useless, you know. As a matter of fact, I feel like a million."

"We know you're not useless, daddy, but you look like a penny that's been run over and dropped into a gutter with gum stuck to it," She smiled and waved. "Bye now!"

Kurt began to grumble. He did NOT look that bad.

……………………..

Ben followed the voice through the front door of the old house, unconcerned as to whether the occupants were home. _Hello_? He called softly. Then, he saw it. It was the narrow stairwell. He looked up into the darkness of it, holding his breath. This is where it happened. This was where the woman had died. Taking a tentative step forward, he put a foot on the first step. He groaned as the memory of the screaming woman carrying him down these stairs flooded back.

_"No! No, you won't take him, my baby, my baby!" She screamed as she ran. Ben put a small hand on her shoulder and looked behind them. A magnetic hum filled the stairwell as the man floated down after them. Magneto was chasing them._

_"Just give me the boy, Carla," Magneto said in a cold, deep voice. Ben felt tears and held them back. He wanted to be strong for mother. He wouldn't let her down. The stairs were long and so very narrow. He stared down instead, down, down the stairs. Someone else was there. Someone…_

Ben whirled around and ran outside into the rain. The chase had gone outside! The other man had followed!

_"Please! Take me, take me instead! Don't take my baby!" Ben held onto mother's hand in the street, staring up at Magneto. The other man was behind them, and Ben did not look. He had to be strong for mother. She was weak, and young, and so frail. _

_"Silly girl, I have no use for you," Magneto laughed. "When we had our agreement, you said the boy would be mine when he turned five years old. Give him to me."_

_"Please! It's his birthday; let me have one more day, one more day!" She fell to her knees, shaking with sobs. Ben hugged her softly. _

_"Mommy, mommy…" he whispered. "Mommy… don't cry…" _

_Magneto advanced and kicked her into the mud. Ben stood and screamed. "No! Leave her alone!" Swinging his fists wildly, a few of his punches hit Magneto's strong leg. Mother wasn't moving, she was too sick, too frail. She would lay there until the police came, and then she would be dead. _

_Magneto laughed and picked him up by the back of his shirt. "You're mine, Ben," He smiled. "Come on, let's go home. Forget your mother—she'll be fine."_

_"No!" The other man called. "Put him down!"_

_"Jason, Jason, now you show pity?" Magneto put the boy down And advanced on Mastermind, his…_

"Ben? Ben, is that really you?"

Ben turned quickly and stared at him, the man he hadn't seen in five years, Mastermind. _What are YOU doing here?_ Ben cried angrily.

"Ben… haven't you been getting my letters?" Jason stepped towards him, reaching out a hand. "I've been writing to you… hasn't he been giving you my letters?"

_What letters? The professor would never hide anything from me!_

"Ben, I… I'm your father."

And for the first time in five years, Ben spoke.

"W-what?"

NEXT: And here my troubles had begun!


	11. And Here My Troubles Had Begun

Hello everyone! I am happy to announce that XxFairyQueenxX (Formerly known as I Wish I Was A Pony) has requested a character and has mentioned writing a story about her herself. Thank you XxFairyQueenxX!

Episode 11: And Here My Troubles Had Begun

Tara wandered into Kurt's infirmary room timidly. She had never asked him for any kind of advice before, but nearly everyone else seemed busy. She was slightly disturbed that Aaron had the opposite reaction to the one she wanted, and if Kurt didn't know about true love and the magic of the universe, who did?

"Um… uncle Kurt? Are you asleep?" She asked quietly, sitting on the edge of his bed. "I need help. Uncle Kurt?"

Kurt opened his eyes and looked at her. "Tara. Hi. I was sleeping."

"I know, I'm sorry," she mumbled, face red. "I just need help with something and I thought maybe you could give me some advice…"

"Advice?" Kurt squinted at her. "A mighty Pryde needs advice from measly old me lying useless in a hospital bed? Well, let's see what I can do."

His German accent seemed comforting, and he looked genuinely interested in what she had to say, so she settled in and filled him in on the events leading up to her and Tyler getting together, and how Aaron had ignored her at school all day. As she ranted, Kurt kept nodding and smiling, as if he already knew what to say. Tara looked at him and took a deep breath. "Well? What do I do?"

"You know, Tara, when your mother first came here I had a huge crush on her. I might have even been in love with her," He added in a near whisper, looking away for a second. "And for a little while, I thought she might have felt the same way about me."

"Really? But you and mom never got together." Tara smiled and glanced at him. "Mom and Dad got married right after high school. So did you and aunt Amanda, right?"

"Right," Kurt looked up again and nodded. "That's exactly what happened. With all the fighting and fuss between me and Amanda's parents, and all the fighting between the other X-Men and Kitty about Lance."

"You guys didn't want her to marry him?"

"Well, I might have been a little biased, but we all knew how it would turn out." Kurt frowned now, looking away. "I just wanted to make sure she didn't get hurt. The day I heard he was going to leave her and you, I wanted to go and cause him as much pain as he caused her, me AND Rogue. We didn't, though, because the Professor told us he knew what he was doing."

"I was really little."

"Yeah, you were five years old, and such a sweetie already that just looking at your sad little face when I went to see you guys made me melt."

"So what happened?"

"Well… it's a long story."

……………….

Ben gasped out a single word. "What?"

"I'm your father, Ben," Jason said again, still holding out a hand. "I was with your mother when she died. I helped to raise you. And I love you, Ben. You are my only son."

"What happened to me?" He whispered. "Why did you fight Magneto?"

"I saw then that what he had done and what he was about to do to you was wrong, and I couldn't let him hurt you or Carla anymore." Mastermind took a few steps forward and Ben backed away. "I fought him and told you to run. I lost, of course, but you had gotten away. That's all I wanted, for you to be safe."

"Was anyone else involved?" Ben growled. "Or was it just you and Magneto who murdered my mother?"

"I would never hurt Carla for any reason. Don't you see? Magneto tricked me. I saw the truth when he attacked her. Only then did I see that all he was going to do was use you."

"Was there anyone else?"

"Yes, the Doctor," Jason said. "The Doctor who was working with Magneto. I saw through is kind and gentle 'my child' façade right away. I believe he was once a priest, but he twisted his X-gene so to become a wretched, terrible man who only cared about his creations, the clones."

"Am I a clone?"

"No, you are my son, and you have such gifts as to interest Magne…"

"You're LYING to me!" Ben screamed in a fit of rage, eyes glowing. His voice cracked and it was hoarse and rough from the years of silence. "You're LYING! What am I?! WHAT AM I?!" Falling to his knees and slumping his shoulders forward, he began to sob. "What am I…?"

Jason stepped forward and kneeled in front of him, placing his hands on Ben's small shoulders. "You are my son, Ben. That's all that matters."

"Can I know who I'm a clone of?" Ben asked weakly, leaning into Jason's arms. The old man held him.

"I'm sorry, my boy. I don't know the answer to that question."

"But I do."

Both Ben and Jason looked up. There, hood and all without a drop of rain touching him, was the Doctor.

"My child…" He hissed. "Do you wish to know the truth?"

…………………

"So what happened after my dad left?" Tara asked eagerly.

"Well, I don't want…" Tara could tell that if Kurt had no fur, he would be beet red. "It's just a little personal. I really don't want to talk about it."

"Come on, what's done is done, right?"

Kurt sighed. "Fine," growling, he leaned back into his pillow. "It was, quite literally, a dark stormy night…"

_Kurt had received the call from Kitty at one in the morning. She had sounded upset, and he dropped his work and drove to her house, making sure that Tara and Catty were asleep in Catty's room and that he didn't wake Amanda. Huddled in a raincoat, he hurried up the steps to her porch and found the spare key in the ceramic cat on the lawn chair. Letting himself in, he called her. "Katzchen? Where are you?"_

_"In here," She sniffled from the kitchen. He went to the kitchen table and sat next to her. She had been crying for a while and the table was littered with used tissues. _

"_You know, that's really disgusting," He tried to joke, pointing at the snot-laden tissues scattered around the room. She let out a little giggle but she didn't smile. "What's wrong?"_

"_What's wrong?" She asked bitterly. "What's wrong is my husband left me. Is Tara okay at your place?" _

"_She should be fine until you get better and settled." Kurt put an arm around her and let her lean against his arm. "You know, we all warned you."_

"_Yeah, but what did I know? I didn't listen," Kitty sniffed again. "I should have. But hey, my little Tara is worth it. She's worth the whole thing."_

"_I agree," Kurt handed her another tissue. "God, Kitty, look how skinny you are. Your fingers are like sticks."_

"_I… I haven't been eating," She mumbled. "I just haven't been hungry."_

"_Kitty…" Kurt took her hand. "How long has it been since you've eaten something?"_

"_A good three weeks, ever since Lance said he was going to leave."_

"_Kitty!" Kurt stood up. "That's it, I'll make you something right now. No, you sit…!"_

_Kitty had stood up with him and was suddenly kissing him. Kurt forgot how to breathe as he held her, then quickly backed away as he remembered himself. "Kitty, what are you doing?"_

"_I thought that you liked me," Kitty whispered, moving in again. Kurt held her away. "Don't you like me anymore?"_

"_Kitty, stop, just… just stop," He said painfully. "I… I'm married. To Amanda, remember? My beautiful wife who I love very much. We can't do this…"_

"_Ha! So you want it," Kitty didn't smile, but she looked suddenly fierce. "You said 'we'. You want it, too."_

"_Kitty…" He grabbed her wrists and looked down. "Yes, yes I want it, but I… I can't have it. I love Amanda. I…" He felt the tears before he could stop them. He was upset. He was angry. "I can't think about this anymore. Guten Nocht, Katherine."_

"_Wait," she said as he opened the front door. He stopped, but didn't look at her. "Did I hurt you?"_

"_Yes," Kurt whispered._

"_How much?"_

"_More than you can ever know."_

"_I'm sorry."_

_He turned his head and looked at her, eyes filling with tears and face contorted with rage. "You should have been sorry years ago." He closed the door behind him, being careful not to slam it in his anger. He had never been this angry. Never._

_Kitty sat down on the sofa. Sobbing, she tried to sleep, and eventually succeeded. When she woke up in the morning, she wandered into the kitchen, where a fresh batch of muffins was sitting in front of Kurt at the table._

"_I just thought you'd want some real muffins," He smiled at her sadly. _

_She hugged him and grinned. "Fuzzy Elf," She giggled. "I'm sorry for what I did. I didn't know what I was doing. I don't want…"_

"_It's okay," Kurt said quietly. "Everything's going to be okay. I promise."_

"So what happened?" Tara asked again. "Are you still mad?"

"No, I'm fine, she's fine, we're all fine," He smiled and nodded. "Now… do you love Tyler?"

"I think so," Tara looked down. "I guess. Yeah."

"Do you love Aaron?"

"Yes," She answered immediately. "I mean… I don't know!"

"All you have to do is figure out which boy makes you happy," Kurt said. "Kitty is wonderful, and I love her, but Amanda makes me happy. I know I'll never stop loving Amanda, and we'll never leave each other. I was never that sure about your mom."

"Okay! Thank you, uncle Kurt," Tara giggled and kissed him on the cheek, waving as she left. Kurt sighed and shook his head. Just like her mother.

…………..

"I want to know the truth," Ben whispered.

"You are a clone, my child," The Doctor said. "But of who, I will not tell you. You were designed as the ultimate weapon. Limitless telepathic and magnetic ability. Nothing would ever stand in your way."

"I'm supposed to be a weapon? For Magneto?"

"But you chose not to be, my son," Jason put a hand on his shoulder. "You chose your own fate. No one can do that for you."

"Professor Xavier chose my fate!" Ben cried. "He's been lying to me since day one! He knew about all of this!"

"He lied to protect you from me," Jason said.

"No," The Doctor said, throwing off his cloak. "He was protecting you from ME."

He was a hideous creature, covered in burns and scars. He was dressed as the classic mad scientist, lab coat and all. And his eyes had no whites, they were dead, black pits, and they began to glow…

………………

When Kurt woke up from his nap, he rolled over and smiled. A batch of muffins sat on the chair with a note- _thought you might want some REAL muffins. Thanks for helping Tara._

Of course, he knew not to touch those muffins.

NEXT: Rise Of the Forgotten!


	12. Rise of the Forgotten

Everyone wants to play in the MX RPG, go to my forum. Someone else'll have to run it… Okay, here goes.

Episode 12: Rise of the Forgotten

"I'm actually starting to get a little worried about Ben," Catty murmured to no one in particular. She looked around the room, where Professor Xavier and Dr. McCoy were playing chess, Tara was reading, and Johnny was helping Steven with his math homework. She almost giggled watching the eight-year-old shake his head at Steven again, but she frowned instead. "No one has seen him all day."

"I'll worry if he doesn't get home before ten," Tara said, turning a page. "If he's not back by curfew, something's wrong. Besides, he's a tough kid, he can take care of himself."

"Yeah, but he didn't tell anyone he was leaving or where he was going," Steven said, looking up and glancing at the clock. "Besides, it's eight already. He and Alaina both missed dinner."

"What?" Xavier looked up at the mention of his daughter. He had been working in his office during the meal. "She didn't come home for dinner?"

"She never came home from school," Catty said. "She called and said her new friend Becka was taking her to the mall for an hour or so, but she hasn't called since then and it's been four hours."

"Who's Becka?" asked Dr. McCoy curiously.

"She's Alaina's friend from school," Tara said, finally glancing up from her book. "They have all the same classes. I think Becka's a foreign exchange student from England."

"A foreign exchange student?" Xavier looked up from the board again, having taken Henry's second knight. "From England?"

"Yeah, and from what I hear, she's kind of crazy and a lot of fun," Johnny said. "Alaina said that Becka was going to take me to see Transformers 8!"

"Henry, I believe that you have me in check mate," The Professor wheeled out of the room. As he closed the door, he looked at Catty. "If in one hour those two don't come home, take a few of your team and go find them. I want the home before ten."

…………….

Alaina woke up feeling groggy. The last thing she remembered was Becka asking her if she had gotten enough sleep, and then incredible pain in the back of her head. She could barely see, it was too dark, but she knew she was tied up. There were other people tied up in the room with her, and she could see the rough outline of a pair of wings on the back of one of them. "Mike!" She whispered. She heard him shush her, and she fell silent.

"Alaina, do you know how you got here?" He asked after a moment of silence.

"No," She whispered back. "But it had something to do with my friend Becka."

"I don't think so," Said another voice from across the room. "Becka's tied up in here with us."

"Ben?" Alaina looked around. "Ben, is that you?" Then she blinked. "Are you TALKING now?"

"I guess, for the time being," He said softly. "And I think Blackangel's friend is in here too."

"Oh, God," Mike suddenly sounded worried. "Kish? Kish, buddy, can you hear me?" There was no response, and Alaina kept glancing around. "Kish, answer me or so help me, I'll…!"

"You'll… what?"

The lights turned on and there, in the doorway, stood the Doctor, cloak less, in his lab coat. "What will you do? Your powers will not work in this room, and I tied you up quite well if I do say so myself."

"What do you want?!" Cried Alaina. "And what does Becka have to do with it? Let her go, she doesn't even…!"

"She was in my way," the Doctor grabbed the arms of her chair and leaned close to her face, close enough for her to smell his breath. It smelled rotten and evil. "And I like pretty little girls who get in my way. They tend to make interesting clone studies."

"Leave her alone!" Mike pulled on his ropes as hard as he could, struggling to beat his wings.

"Again, you threaten with no power to fulfill your promises," the Doctor stood. "I told you, your powers do not work here."

"Your name is Father David White," Ben whispered. "You believed in power and corruption as a means for survival in a world that hated and feared you. You were torn between faith and science. You searched for a cure for your mutation, but there was an accident, and the result was that your X-Gene became so twisted and your powers drove you mad, destroying the priest and leaving only the Doctor."

"Ah," the Doctor slowly walked over to Ben. "Your powers are not affected by my nullifier."

"My magnetism is," he growled. "But nothing you can cook up will block my telepathy. I can hear people grocery shopping in Russia."

"That does not give you the excuse…" the Doctor leaned in as close as he could, eyes looking deep into Ben's. Those black pits sent a chill down Ben's spine. "To dig around… in MY MIND!"

Ben tried to leap backward when the Doctor screamed, and wound up on the floor. The chair had fallen backward, and the ropes had been cut.

"WHAT?!" The Doctor shrieked, whirling around. Kish's chair was empty. Ben felt a hand grab his and there was a faint bamf.

Ben suddenly found himself coughing in a stale-smelling room that was lit with a greenish glow. As he pushed himself up, he saw Alaina being helped up by Mike and Becka on the floor, unconscious. Kish stood apart from the others, looking up at the source of the green light. It was a glass tube, filled with orange-green water which bubbled as though boiling. Ben shook his head to clear it. He recognized it.

Mike walked to Kish. Standing beside him, he looked up at the tube. "Kish?"

"It's just like my dream," Kish whispered. "Only I'm inside of it. The Doctor spoke to me while I was in there. I'm a…"

"Clone," Ben said suddenly, causing the other three to look at him. "We all are clones. Alaina, you're a clone of Xavier and Mystique."

"How do you know that?" She cried. "Mystique is my mother!"

"I was inside David's head," Ben said. "Kish, your father told you that your mother was also Mystique. Your father is Magneto."

"Yes," Kish said. "But you said…"

"You are a combination clone," Ben turned to face him. "Magneto, Mystique, and Nightcrawler. Every time the Doctor ran out of DNA from one, he used DNA from another."

"What about me?" Mike asked. "Who am I a clone of?"

"Warren Worthington the third," Ben whispered, avoiding Mike's stare.

"Who else?" Ben didn't answer, so Mike grabbed his shoulders and shook him. "Who ELSE?"

"Mike, don't," Alaina sobbed.

"The second set of genetics was taken from David White himself," Ben murmured at the ground. "You're a composite clone of the Angel and the Doctor."

Mike dropped Ben's shoulders, shaking his head. "No," he whispered. "No way, that's nuts. You're lying. That's not true."

"It is," Ben looked away.

"And what about you?" Kish looked away from the tube and Ben could see the tears welling up in his eyes.

"I don't know," Ben said. "The Doctor didn't create me. It took a much better scientist to create my genetics. He hired some other guy to make me because he couldn't do it himself."

"So what do we do now?" Alaina sniffled, kneeling next to Becka.

"I guess we get out of here and pretend like none of this ever happened," Kish said. "We just go on like normal, no big deal."

"No big deal?" Mike snarled. "This is a huge deal, Kish! Not everything is a game! This is not a game!"

"I… I never thought it was a game," Kish looked down, hurt.

They sat in silence for a while until Kish stood. "I'll get us out of here. Let's just go home and go to bed. It'll be fine, we can think about it tomorrow."

"Yeah, sure. Tomorrow," Mike said softly.

……………….

The Doctor was losing his strength. The hate and despair of his creations had been fueling him, but now they had escaped. The darkness within him stirred softly, aching for more food.

"Master, I will not fail you," He whispered hoarsely. It stirred again and then fell still, hungrily waiting for more fury and anguish. "They will be ours to command. Magneto was merely a puppet, an excuse and a source of money for my creations. They will feed you soon."

…………..

You sure you're going to be okay?" Mike asked Alaina at the gates to the institute. Ben presses his hand to the sensor and the gates began to open. Kish shuffled his feet, carrying Becka. He got her address from Alaina and he and Mike would take her home with a wiped memory.

"I'll be okay," she said softly. "I guess I just need some time."

"I'll see you around," He said as he began to turn away.

"Mike…" She whispered, and as he turned back she swiftly gave him a kiss on the cheek. She ran to catch up with Ben, waving. Mike watched them go into the house as the gates closed.

"Come on, Kish," He said. Kish ignored him, looking up at the school. "Come _on_, Kish."

"S-sorry," He muttered. They teleported away, leaving only the smell of sulfur.

NEXT: Loss of Heart


	13. The Turning

This is the last episode of season one, then there's going to be a feel-good Christmas special. Sorry I took so long, I've been keeping up with the RPG for a while.

Episode 13: The Turning

Kish slammed into the wall full-force, causing rocks to fall from cracks. He slid to the ground, moaning in pain as Magneto advanced. "Father…" He whispered, feeling the blood trickle down his chin. "I'm s-sorry, I just…"

Magneto picked him up again and threw him into another wall, this time creating an audible crack that resounded across the huge metal dome-shaped control room. Remy glanced up from his work position, but didn't turn to look at what was going on. "I just… I didn't mean to d-disobey…"

"You disobeyed a direct order," Magneto shouted, striding forward and lifting Kish into the air by the front of his shirt. "All you had to do was bring Xavier's clones to me. Was that so difficult for your tiny insignificant and incompetent brain to understand?"

"No…" Kish groaned as Magneto shook him. "I just thought… I should let them go… I thought… f-fair's fair…"

"They let you and Blackangel off the hook, so that means you were kind in turn and let the little brats go home," Magneto said in mock sweetness. "How… _adorable_. Simply _heartwarming_." Throwing him again, Kish skidded across the floor and tried to push himself up, holding his side and wincing in pain. Magneto was coming towards him again. Looking up, he saw that his father was holding out a hand to help him up. Reaching for it, Magneto suddenly pulled it away, causing Kish to fall onto his side. Kish yelped in agony.

As Magneto passed Gambit on his way out, he waved to Kish struggling on the floor. "Gambit, clean that mess up."

As soon as the doors slammed shut, Remy leaped to his feet and ran to Kish. "You alright, mon ami?" He asked softly. "Here, I'll help you up." Pulling the teenager to his feet, he let Kish lean on his chest. "There, you're okay, little man."

"I d-don't understand why he hurts me like that," Kish sobbed as Remy sat him down and started cleaning up his bloody face. "It's like he's—Ow—like he's convinced everything's my fault."

"The man's been through a lot," Remy wiped up the blood on his mouth. "He used to beat up on Pietro when he was younger. Never saw him do this to him, though. Never this bad."

Kish coughed up more blood and Remy mopped it up. "My side really hurts," he moaned softly.

"Probably broke a few ribs," Remy touched the side in question and Kish hissed and winced. "I'll tape them up. Come on, let's go. Remy will fix you right up."

"Y-yeah, in just enough time for him to break me again."

"That's right, now be quiet."

………………..

Mike tapped his fingers rapidly on the tabletop, absently staring at Manny on the opposite side of the room. Eventually, Manny snapped. "What?!" He shouted. "Stop tapping, you're giving me a headache."

Mike looked away from Manny and instead glanced at the clock. Nine-o-seven. Kish was never late for breakfast. True, Kish had left last night after dropping off Ben and Alaina, but he was always back by eight thirty.

"PLEASE, stop tapping?" Manny said. "Ai."

Mike looked at him. "If you don't like my tapping, you can always just leave," He said in a growl. Manny stood up, cursed at him in Spanish, and went to go hog the phone with his "Mami" again.

The phone rang before he could get to it, and he brought it to Mike. "It's for you," Manny said grouchily.

"Hello? Kish?" Mike asked.

"No, it's Alaina," She said softly. "Listen, I don't have much time to chat, is everything okay over there? Ben mentioned something about you guys getting in trouble for letting us go maybe."

"No, we're okay," Mike said. "I don't know where Kish is, but I'm sure he's fine."

"Okay," Alaina breathed. "Can you come meet me at my school after classes?"

"Sure," Mike said. Before she could hang up, he added, "Hey, Alaina?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

There was a brief silence. He imagined she was probably blushing her cute little face off. He knew he was getting red. "I… Mike, I love you, too," She said quickly and a little loudly. "I gotta go, goo'bye!"

He listened to the phone slam down with a large clatter, then hang up. He smiled widely and stood up, having completely forgotten about Kish. Putting his dishes in the sink, he thought about her pretty smile and her sapphire eyes, wondering how he could ever score a girl like that.

…………………

"Who was that?" Steven asked as he walked in on the furiously blushing Alaina hanging up the phone.

"Nobody," Alaina blurted out too quickly. "Um, is was Becka. She said Josh Tennyson likes me…"

"Uh-huh, and I'm the mayor of New York City," Steven said, sitting on her bed. "What's up with you and Mike?"

"You… KNOW about this?" She nearly shrieked. "Does…?"

"Nobody else knows, so far as I can tell," He said with a smile, pushing her short brown hair out of her face. "It's okay, I won't tell anybody."

"Thanks," She said softly, hugging him. "You're the best, Steve."

"Any time," He smiled. "Now, you better get down to breakfast. You have a test in the danger room after school, remember?"

"Oh yeah," She murmured. "I forgot."

………….

Kish had to go to school, broken ribs or no, so he set off on a three-bamf journey. When he got to the alley he used beside the school, he was so worn out that he nearly collapsed, leaning against the wall for support. His side burned like hell, and he couldn't see straight, seeing instead colorful dots and wavy lines. He was dizzy, and he tasted blood on his lips. "Urgh," he moaned. "Dammit." He wiped his mouth on the back of his hand and tried to walk. He fell forward, scraping his hands. Rolling onto his back, he groaned loudly and looked up at the cloudy late-fall sky. He listened and heard the bell ring. He couldn't get up and he couldn't call for help. He supposed he was stuck there until Mike found him.

………………

Mike noticed vaguely that Kish was missing from school that day, but he was so focused on meeting Alaina after school he didn't think too much about it. Maybe he was on a mission with his father or something, who knew WHAT Kish did at the Dome. He always came back tired and in pain, so maybe he did go on missions for Magneto.

The last bell rang too late for Mike as he leaped to his feet and bolted from the classroom, ignoring the taunts about his wings. They were fluttering excitedly as he breathed fresh air outside, and he took off without a thought. The air held his wings as he beat them lazily, truly happy for what seemed like the first time in his life.

Then he saw Kish.

He immediately landed in the alley and knelt next to him. He was unconscious and running a high fever. "Kish? Kish, buddy, wake up, rise and shine."

"Whu… what..?" Kish mumbled. "Ow… oh, gott, my side…"

"Kish. Man, who did this to you?" Mike helped him up and caught him when he started to fall again.

"I quit, Mike," He whispered. "I quit. He can't do this to me anymore… he's gunna kill me."

Mike sat him down against the wall and gave him some water out of his bag. "Who's going to kill you?"

"My… my father," Kish said slowly, gulping the water down. "I need to get out of here, I need to go somewhere safe."

"I'll get you back to the brotherhood house," Mike said, scooping him up. He didn't weigh very much for someone who never stopped eating.

……………..

Alaina tapped her foot and looked at her watch. Not only did Mike not show up, Steven hadn't shown up to pick her up yet. She waited another ten minutes, not believing Mike would stand her up. Something terrible must have happened. Mike would never stand her up.

Steven eventually pulled up. "Sorry," He said. "I had to get Ben from the park." Ben was in the passenger seat, looking miserable. He hadn't smiled since the night they found out about the cloning.

"That's okay," She murmured, getting into the back seat. "Where's Catty?"

"She teleported home," He said. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she lied. "I'm fine…"

………………

She waited by the phone that night, sure that he would call, that he would apologize for not coming. Alaina waited until midnight. She sighed sadly. "Some Prince Charming," She muttered.

"Somebody call for a Prince Charming?" She looked at the window. Mike was climbing in. "Sorry, they're fresh out. You'll have to settle for a Prince Jackass."

"Mike!" She breathed, running to hug him.

"Sorry I stood you up," He whispered, stroking her hair. "It was Kish, he was really hurt. I had to take him home."

"Is he okay?" She said, suddenly worried. "He didn't get in trouble, did he?"

"No, no, he's fine," Mike lied. He didn't want her to be worrying, losing sleep. Kish would be fine. "Hey, Alaina?"

"Yeah?" She leaned closer to him.

"I've been wanting to do this all day." He lifted her by the waist and gently kissed her. When she pulled away, he smiled. "What's the matter? Never been kissed before?"

She shook her head. "No."

"Glad to give you your first one," he said softly. She kissed him back. Eventually, he broke away and went for the window. "I have to go."

"Wait!" Alaina grabbed his arm. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah," Mike said. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Please Review, that is the end of Season one and coming soon is the Christmas special, separating this from season two and filling in the gaps. Thank you for sticking with me for so long!


	14. The Christmas Special

Happy day, I am writing my first Christmas special.

Merry Christmas from Mission X!

It was Christmas Eve at the institute, and everyone was in the living room, spending time with the people that had become family over the past six months. Sara could hardly believe that she had been with this group for almost four months.

Aaron was the only one not there, spending the evening with his parents and his sister, and would be at the institute to open all of his gifts around eleven the next morning. Sara watched as Johnny tossed aside present after present, looking for the biggest one that he could open that night. She watched as Tyler tried to get Tara under the mistletoe—they had been going steady but she still seemed reluctant to the relationship. The actual happy couple, Steven and Catty, cuddled on a couch by the fire, having dodged a disapproving glare from Kurt for kissing in a public space. Alaina looked miserable and kept asking if she could go to bed early. Ben looked just as miserable and didn't ask. Sara watched him stop in front of the stairs, look up them, then walk past them to the elevators.

The adults talked amongst themselves, and Sara couldn't find a place with anyone. She had faced it that morning, her powers were kind of lame. The ability to remember everything she had ever experienced was nothing next to the ability to control fire or read minds. What could she do that was useful on the field?

Then she felt someone's arm around her shoulders. She turned as Kurt sat next to her. "Hey, blue," He said. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm alright…" She lied.

"Uh-huh," Kurt nodded sarcastically. "What's wrong, kid?"

"Look at everybody," She said, waving her hand dramatically. "They all have places, people to talk to and hang out with. Aaron's the only one who talks to me, and all he does is stare at my chest and pretend not to like Tara."

"I used to feel that way," He said, petting her hair absently. "Jean and Scott were already close when I showed up, and when Kitty came she fell in instantly with Jean. I felt like no one wanted to be my friend."

"And what does that have to do with me?" She muttered.

"Look at me now," He grinned. "They love me. I'm married to a beautiful woman and I have a beautiful daughter who is happy and managed to fall in love with a decent guy. I'm happy because I didn't give up. Assert yourself a little more, horn your way into the group. Tyler was new to the original team, and now he's the one everybody goes to talk to when they have a problem."

"So you're saying… I have to be likable."

"You already are likable, sweet heart," He said, kissing her on the forehead. "But they need a little help to see that." He got up. "Now, IF you don't mind, there's a certain cat around here that needs to fall victim to the annual mistletoe chase."

Sara giggled and laughed with everyone as Kurt chased Kitty through the room as he did every year. She saw Alaina sneak off up the stairs and decided to follow her.

……………

Alaina slammed her door shut. No calls, no e-mails, no cheesy card in the mail. Mike hadn't even looked at her when she and Ben saw him and Isaac at the mall earlier. He seemed to be avoiding her and after the little kissing episode, that hurt quite a bit. It had been a month since he had spoken to her for longer than five minutes, and when he did speak to her, they talked about Kish and his recovery. He wouldn't even tell her what had happened to Kish. She had a hard time explaining to the others how she knew that Kish was ill and why he didn't show up the last time the brotherhood and Mission X fought.

All she wanted was a simple 'Merry Christmas' from the guy who was supposed to love her.

Maybe he was just really worried about his friend, she thought. Kish WAS his best friend, and when she went to the brotherhood house to see Mike a week ago, Kish had answered the door and he looked pretty bad. Then that jerk Manny had told her to buzz off. She giggled at the memory of the liberating moment when she turned into a bee and stung him in the face before she 'buzzed off'. She could hear Kish laughing even after she turned the corner as Manny cursed in Spanish.

But what if he didn't really love her? She was mortified that she could even think such a thing were true. He had said that he loved her, he had held her, kissed her, and she knew it was all the truth. And I love him, she thought guiltily, thinking about her friends, and her father who she was lying to, Ben and Steven who tried their hardest to keep her secret.

The knock on the door startled her half to death as she let out a tiny squeal and jumped. "Alaina? It's Sara," She heard her say through the door. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure," Alaina breathed, calming down long enough to open the door. Sara stood there with two cookies and a hot chocolate.

"You left before Mrs. Summers passed these out," Sara said as she walked in and sat on the bed. "Here. They're good. The hot chocolate's for you, too."

"Why the sudden niceness?" Alaina questioned, taking the cookies and the mug.

"I was worried about you," Sara smiled sweetly; Alaina had never seen her smile like that before. Now she could see why the guys liked her so much. Sara had a very pretty face. "You seemed so sad and I thought some chocolate would do you some good. What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Alaina muttered. Another lie.

"Something's wrong, I know a lie when I hear one," Sara said softly. "I know you guys don't really like me yet, but you can at least tell me the truth."

"We like you just fine," Alaina said quickly. "Okay, okay, I'll tell you this much—it's a boy."

"A boy, huh?" Sara brightened. Was she EVER good at this kind of problem. "Let me guess… avoidance? No good holiday wishes?"

"That's right," Alaina nodded.

"Well, without knowing who the boy is, giving advice could be pretty tough…" She saw Alaina's terrified face and smiled. "But I'll do my best. The best course of action is to stand your ground. Don't go to him, don't call him. You'll seem needy and high-maintenance. Wait for him to call you."

"What if he doesn't call?" Alaina moaned into her sweater sleeve.

"Then he just lost a really beautiful and wonderful girl," Sara said sweetly, putting a hand on her cheek. :He doesn't deserve you if he doesn't care enough to call or even send a quick e-mail. I think you deserve the best guy in the world, Lanie, and if that's not him, then don't bother."

"But he IS the best guy in the world," Alaina sniffed.

"Then he'll come around." Sara got up and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Don't worry about it. If he loves you, and you love him, it'll work out. I'm going to bed."

"Good night," Alaina smiled at her and wiped her eyes. "Thank you, Sara."

"Anytime," Sara smiled back as she closed the door. Alaina was such a sweetie. Sara knew why no one accepted her yet—all she had to do was accept them.

…………….

"I gotta go home with mom and dad," Catty said as she kissed Steven on the cheek. Out in the cold snowy night, neither of them were cold in jeans and thin sweaters due to Catty's fur and Steven's natural internal heater.

"I'll see you in the morning then," Steven smiled and took her hand. Squeezing gently, Catty looked at the ground. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"I don't know," She said quietly. "I just… want to stay with you… but I'll be back in the morning, no big deal, right?"

"I could go with you," Steven caught her in a hug. "Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, you want to spend time with Scott and Jean and Johnny," Catty pressed her nose against his neck. "They're your family. I have to spend time with mine."

"But I'll see you in the morning," Steven let her go and looked at her face, checking for tears. She wasn't crying—she was a very strong girl.

"Yeah."

"Tabitha Katherine, if I don't see you in the backseat of this car…!" They heard Kurt shout from the driveway. The car was running.

"Guess you gotta go," Steven smiled and started to turn around.

"Hey," Catty took his arm and turned him back around. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she kissed him.

"Hey! We're waiting!" Kurt yelled out of the driver's-side window and honking the horn loudly.

"By," Catty whispered. She ran to the car and waved to him as she pulled herself into the backseat. He waved back as he watched the car pull away. Sighing happily, he made his way into the house and realized that Johnny had opened the noisiest toy he could and was now playing with it. It was going to be a long night.

………………..

"Open it!" Kaylee shouted, giggling bubbly as Aaron fiddled with the ribbons on the present. His little sister had stuck so many bows on the darn thing that he couldn't find the wrapping paper.

"I'm trying, I'm trying," Aaron said, turning the box over. "God, did this come with an instruction manual I don't know about?"

"Nooooo, silly," Kaylee laughed, tugging the box out of his hand. "If you can't do it, I will."

Aaron smiled at his seven-year-old sister as she herself struggled to get the ribbons off. Looking at his parents, he could tell they were trying hard not to laugh. Kaylee finally squealed and bit the ribbon, yanking at it with her teeth. "Do you want scissors now, She-rah?" her father said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm fine!" She growled though clenched teeth. She continued to yank at the ribbon when Aaron snipped it with a pair of scissors. "Yay! Look, I did it!" Aaron laughed. She hadn't seen him cut it.

The phone rang as he ripped the paper and found two new sets of pencils and a journal to write his stories in, and he went to answer it after hugging his sister. "Yeah?" He said as he picked up the phone. In the next room, he heard his mother shout in surprise as she opened Kaylee's gift to her.

"You never change, do you?" Said Tara, laughing.

"Oh, Tara!" He nearly dropped the phone as he sat down. "What—what are you calling me for?"

"Catty asked me to. She knows I don't celebrate Christmas… but, well, Merry Christmas." Tara sounded completely cool and collected. Aaron was glad she couldn't see how red he was.

"And you couldn't say this tomorrow morning _why_?" Aaron asked.

"Because, I wanted… I um… I missed you, okay?" Not so cool and collected anymore.

"Fine, then," It was Aaron's turn to be calm. "Happy Chanukah."

"Whatever," Tara mumbled.

"Well, see you tomorrow," Aaron put a hand over his eyes. He sounded like a jerk. "Um… Tara."

"Yeah, see you," Tara said as she hung up.

Why did he always have to screw up around her?

……………..

Ben sat in his room and sighed. He hadn't spoken to anyone since yesterday, not even Alaina. He was the only one of the clones who had no idea who he was. He felt incredibly lost and alone in the world, and he even wished the phone would ring and it would be Mastermind wishing him a merry Christmas.

Christmas had never been fun for Ben.

There was a knock on the door and he ignored it at first, but whoever it was knocked louder. He scanned their mind to see if it was someone he minded talking to, and it turned out to be Tyler. What did Tyler want? Opening the door, he looked up at his teammate and put on a fake smile.

"Hey, Ben, I was just wondering what was up," Tyler ruffled his hair and Ben shivered. He hated people who thought that doing that was affectionate. "You left in such a hurry and you didn't even get cookies."

"I don't want cookies," Ben said. His voice still sounded strange to him, his throat still sore and closed up.

"yeah, I thought you didn't," Tyler was starting to look uncomfortable. "Hey, kiddo… I'm in the next room… if you want to talk or something…"

"Okay, will do, bye-bye," Ben said, starting to close the door.

"Wait!" Tyler grabbed the door before it could shut. "I… I came for advice."

"You came to ME for advice?" Ben narrowed his eyes. Nobody ever came to little Ben for advice. Maybe Tyler didn't think little of him after all. "What do you need advice about?"

"Well, you know Tara, you're one of the original five," Tyler sidled his way through the conversation, looking embarrassed to be standing in a ten-year-old's doorway talking about his girlfriend. "I don't think she's really with me, you know? And I thought, Ben knows the girl, go talk to him, right?"

"She likes you," Ben said, finally feeling appreciated. "She likes you, but…"

"Okay, there's a 'but', I knew there was a 'but'…" Tyler sighed, rolling his eyes. "It's Aaron, right? She's in love with him."

"Yeah," Ben looked at his feet. Now he was the bearer of bad news.

"Man, my girl is in love with my best friend, that's great." Tyler's shoulders slumped forward as he was demoralized by the thought.

"Sorry," Ben offered.

"Thanks, little dude. I owe you one," Tyler patted Ben's shoulder. "Seriously, thanks. I think I already knew, but I just wanted to… well, check with the smartest kid in the house."

"I thought YOU were the smartest kid in the house," Ben laughed.

"Well, even Johnny knew about Tara and Aaron, I can't be all THAT smart," Tyler said, smiling. "Good night dude."

"Good night," Ben felt a lot better. "…dude."

………………….

Mike looked into Alaina's widow. It was almost midnight and she was still awake, sitting up in bed and reading. Tapping lightly on the glass, he watched as she jumped in surprise. She ran to open the window.

"He knows when you're awake—ow!" Mike cried as she punched him in the arm. "What the hell?! What'd I do?!"

"That's for not calling," She whispered loudly. "And THIS…"

"Ow!"

"Is for being a jerk!"

"Hey, I did warn you," Mike said, smiling sheepishly. "Merry Christmas?"

"Why have you been avoiding me?" Alaina asked as she helped him into the room. "What did I do wrong?"

"You didn't do anything," Mike sat on the bed, rubbing his arm. Seemingly forgiving him, Alaina sat next to him and hugged, leaning into his chest. "I was really worried… Kish got really hurt because he let you guys go, I didn't want Magneto to go after you because I was seeing you."

Alaina looked up at him. "You were trying to protect me? That's why you've been ignoring me? That's why you didn't call me?"

"Yeah," Mike pushed her hair back and was startled when Alaina grabbed the sides of his face and kissed him. "Um… what was that for?"

"I love you, no matter how stupid you are sometimes," Alaina smiled and Mike began to relax. "I can take care of myself, you know. I can turn into a six-foot long tiger. You don't have to protect me, silly."

"I know, but I was worried anyway," Mike stroked her hair absently as she leaned on him. "I got you a present."

"Really?" She sat up and grinned. "Lemmie see! What is it?"

"You are so cute," Mike said softly as he pulled a small white box out of his jacket pocket. "There. See?"

"Didn't even wrap it," she teased. "You cheap… Oh. Oh gosh. Mike…" She looked into the box and pulled out a silver chain necklace, and the charm on the end was a small sapphire with her initials carved into it. "Oh gosh. It's beautiful. My favorite stone…" She let him hook it onto her neck and then looked up at him. "Wow."

"I was saving for a while," He shrugged.

She threw her arms around his neck and squeezed. "I love you so much, Mike. I'm sorry, I didn't get you anything…"

"That's okay, I know what I want," Mike took her arms and pulled them off. Then holding her hands in his, he kissed her. "How about… the mall? Is Saturday okay? I want to buy you lunch."

"Okay," Alaina nodded. "But you'd better go, we might get caught."

"Right," Mike stood up and moved to the window with Alaina. Kissing her one more time, he touched her face. "Good night, pretty kitty."

"Good night, angel," She whispered as he flew away. She flopped onto her bed with a warm feeling in her stomach. She was happy.

……………….

Mike pulled himself back through his window. Kish was moaning in his sleep and when Mike closed the window, Kish's eyes snapped open. Sitting up, he winced. "Back from your date already, Romeo?" Kish asked as Mike sat on his own bed.

"Yeah," Mike said absently.

"Well, I can see her effect on you already," Kish laughed quietly. "Girls are bad news for you man. She's changing you. I can hardly recognize you."

"I love her."

"That's going a little far," Kish put his head back on his pillow and turned to face Mike's bed. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I'm sure." Mike pulled off his jacket and flopped onto his back. "She's just… just… you know."

"No, I'm afraid no one likes me enough to be 'just… just.'" Kish smiled. Then he frowned and rolled onto his back. "I wasn't kidding, Mike."

"About what?"

"About leaving." Looking up at the ceiling, he imagined the stars beyond it. "I'm really going to the Xavier institute, dude."

"No you're not," Mike laughed. Then he looked at Kish's solemn face and knew he meant business. "When?"

"January first," Kish said. "First day of the new year. I have to get out of here. I just don't BELONG here. You might believe in my father, but… I… don't. I love my father to death but I just don't agree with him."

"You love your father? After what he did to you?" Mike looked at him questioningly. "Why?"

"I can't hate him." Kish sighed. "I just know I'm not safe."

"If you feel that strongly about it…" Mike felt his throat closing up and became suddenly determined to help his friend. "You should be pretty much healed up by the first. I'll cover you."

"Thank you, Mike." Kish closed his eyes. "Thank you so much."

That's it! That's the Christmas Special! Please review, and I'll be starting season two soon. Also, anyone who has time please go to my profile page and vote on which two people should die in season two. Thanks everybody!


	15. Arrival

This is the first episode of Season two, co-written by Allg1990 and XxXFairyQueenXxX in the role playing game. Dominique was created by XxXFairyQueenXxX. Thanks, you guys!

Episode 1: The Arrival

Dominique stepped out of the taxi, her wavy brown hair tied back in a ponytail, her dark brown eyes were framed by well mascarad eyelashes, her lips wore a blood red lipstick and she was wearing a low-cut, pink v-neck top covered by an open denim jacket and a pair of black jeans. The professor had sent a taxi to collect her after she had collected her things from her old boarding school. She was badly craving a cigarette and tried to take a packet of them out of her bag but ended up dropping her handbag and a load of things spilled out including a pack of cigarettes, a lighter, some aspirin, a phone, a set of keys, some make-up and a few other things. She sighed in frustration then knelt down and began to gather her things together.

"Need some help?" Said a voice above her. All she could see was a pair of worn out sneakers until he knelt down beside her. She had seen him through the taxi window not ten minutes ago on a corner. He had longish black hair in a ponytail and black eyes that seemed warmer than his pale face. "I'm Kish. I just got here too. Wanna help me convince these guys I'm on the good side now?"

Dominique rolled her eyes, what was about guys that they always saw her as the damsel in distress. She put her things back in her bag and stood up. "I don't even know you, why would I help you?" She said in her strong French accent, her brown eyes flickering dangerously.

"I'm technically a bad guy around here. I dunno, you just looked like the kind of person who would help me with that sort of thing..." He smiled nervously, obviously not as cocky as he first appeared to her. She thought he might have a self-confidence issue. Picking up a few of your things, he pointed out the cigarettes. "You know, those things'll kill you. I mean, Magneto's bad, but this stuff..."

"Don't give me the smoking will kill you speech, if I didn't smoke, I would probably end up killing myself." Dominique said. She lit a cigarette and blew smoke in Kish's face on purpose. "They might kill you from second hand smoke, but I don't really mind." She said with a sly smirk.

"I like you," Kish laughed. "You're the first person around here that treats me with more disrespect than my father." Coughing and rubbing his nose, he smiled. "Okay, so, no smoking will kill you speech. Got it. Won't do it again." Now she knew he had self-confidence issues.

Dominique smiled and let her guards down for a second. "My name is Dominique." She said.

He smiled back. "Hey, I got a name, that's progress, right?" Looking down, he suddenly seemed sad. "I'm no good at getting people to like me, you know? See, I'm not a bad person, but my father, he..." He abruptly stopped talking and looked away from her. "Never... never mind."

"Oh, I know aaalll about the whole bad father scene, I don't even think I'll be here very long, one thing my parents taught me was that it doesn't take long for people to give up on me. My mother walked out when I was a child and my father gave up on me when he found out I was a mutant, my old school gave up on me, the day I got there, they only let me stay because my father was paying extra to make them keep me." Dominique said counting all the people who had given up on her off on her fingers. "I don't care, all really need is myself and a packet of cigarettes."

"I hate people who give up," He said softly. "And I think you're starting to. From what I hear, this place is pretty cool. That's why I'm here. This place, it'll keep me safe from my dad. My dad... Magneto, the big baddie..." Sighing, he looked at the school. "Don't give up on this place yet. It's cool here, I know it. And...!" He held a finger up. "You can count on me." Holding out a hand, he offered to shake. "Friends?"

Dominique laughed. "I'll think about it." She said. "You can be my ami for now." She said with a wink, wondering if he knew French.

He blinked in confusion. "I'm sorry?" He said. "I speak German, Polish, and English. No French, sorry. But great that you'll think about it!" He seemed unusually cheery. "So, what the heck is an 'ami'? I've asked Remy loads of times but he won't answer. He just keeps calling me 'Mon Ami, Mon Ami'..."

Dominique decided to have a little fun. "Tu ferai voir." She said walking towards the school. "Are you coming?"

"Ach," He said displaying the first bit of his German heritage. His accent was barely there. "Hooboy... yes, I'm coming, I'm coming. Hey! You dropped this!" He shouted, running up to her and holding her lighter. "I really shouldn't give this back, but hey. I like you too much for you to go and kill yourself." This is by far the most chipper person she had ever met. But he still seemed sad for some reason.

Dominique raised an eyebrow and took the lighter. She knocked on the door of the mansion and waited for someone to answer. "You can't like me that much, I've only known you for five and a half minutes."

"You seem... nice," Kish said steadily, treading lightly around her bad temper. "You just seem like a cool person... can I call you Dom or is that a bad thing too?" He glanced up at the door and shuddered. "They are so going to beat me up when they see me here. Like they're going to believe I'm a changed guy. Riiight. I don't even believe it."

Suddenly the door swung open, and a boy in his late teens walked out, bright green hair uncombed and sticking up in all directions. "Yeah?" he asked, in a manner of greeting, and then noticed Dominique. "Um, hi." He said, more politely. "Are you here to see the profess-" His gaze fell upon Kish, and his eyes narrowed. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"Du-uh," Kish started to step back, eyes now wide as saucers. "Um... I-I um..."

The other boy started to lift his hands into the air, and Dominique felt a slight breeze pick up around her feet, catching at the edges of her shirt. Before its power could increase, a telepathic voice sounded in their minds. 

_Aaron, please refrain from being rude to our guests. Dominique, Kish, welcome to the Xavier institute. Aaron, please show them to my office._

Dominique shivered. "I don't think I'll ever get used to that." She muttered. Aaron stopped glaring at Kish for a moment to flash her a grin.  
"It takes a while." He admitted, and turned around, motioning for them to follow him.

"You're... um..." Kish began, trying to stay out of Aaron's way. "You want to kill me, don't you?" He seemed extremely nervous and was suddenly regretting coming here. What is he didn't make it to the office? There were still eight odd kids that wanted him dead around here. He gulped.

Aaron clenched his fists again, and the wind picked up.  
"If the professor hadn't intervened, you'd be at the bottom of a lake. So I'll give you one little tip: don't talk to me."  
Kish nodded hurriedly, his shaking subsiding a little. "Okay, I can do that..." he started, but a sudden ball of air hurled to his chest knocked him to the floor.  
"What did I just say?" demanded Aaron, a barely visible ball of swirling wind perched on top of one fingertip.

"Hey, that was uncalled for!" Kish shouted. "Geeze, I come here looking for help and you knock me over, well that's great, that's just great. I hope you treat Dom here with a bit more respect than THAT!" Standing up and brushing himself off. "I want you to know something right now, buster!" He said, putting a finger on Aaron's chest. "You can NOT treat me that way, because I WILL drop you!" Suddenly rethinking, he looked at the ground.

"You just crossed the line." growled Aaron, the clenched ball of winds growing larger around his fist. Kish backed away, eyes flashing nervously. Then Aaron stopped suddenly, looking bewildered. Professor Xavier rolled in with his wheelchair.

"Thank GOD!" Kish cried, running to hide behind him. "I'm SAFE!"

Dominique rolled her eyes. "Stop being a jerk, you're giving me a headache." She said to Aaron then turned to Kish. "Stop being a baby and if you call me Dom one more time, I will break your arm." If looks could kill Dominique would have killed them both. She looked at Professor Xavier. "Bonjour misuer." She said.

"Well, I'm not safe," Kish whimpered. He stepped out from behind Xavier and smiled weakly. "Okay, I'm okay. I just freaked out. Near-death experience and all."

Dominique sighed. "Boys are such babies." She muttered.

"I AM NOT A BABY!" Kish shouted, suddenly angry and causing Aaron to jump. Dominique put a hand to her forehead-- Kish was really upset about something. "I... am not... a baby," He gasped for air for a minute, then smiled. "See? Okay now."

"Don't shout." Dominique said. Kish was giving off a lot of negative energy.  
"Fine you aren't a baby, you're a petit." she said trying to shut him up.

"Huh," he said softly. "I have no idea why I just got so mad. It's my father," He added suddenly. "My dad did this to me, yes he did. My nerves are frikkin SHOT."

"Well," cut in the professor. "Dominique, Kish, please, come with me. Aaron, we will talk later."  
"Yes, Professor." Aaron grumbled. With a glare in Kish's direction, he stormed off, the winds sweeping around him like a makeshift cape.

"Bye, Aaron," Kish mumbled in an attempt to be friendly. He knew no one was going to trust him, why did he even bother...? "I should just leave," He said, looking at his feet.

"What was that you said about giving up to easily?" Dominique said. "Besides if everyone here is like that." She nodded to Aaron. "Then I'll need someone like you around and if you dare leave I'm just going to have to at you up and bring you back again." She added.

Kish smiled at her and the headache ebbed away. It was like Kish was some kind of emotional projector, and the mood swings were enough to label him crazy. "I won't give up, I just thought... Well, I guess I'll have to stay, I mean, only if you want. I don't think I like the idea of you dragging me back here. And besides, I bet he's not really like that, but I'm a bad guy. He doesn't trust me."

"Too right I don't!" Kish heard Aaron mutter from the end of the corridor. He didn't know how the boy had heard- were they really speaking that loud, or had Aaron's personal winds carried back his voice?

"I really wish you did," He murmured under his breath. Sometimes giving up seemed like the only option. It had always been his exit strategy from his father. Then Kish glanced up at Dominique, and he knew he couldn't give up, because that would be personal to her.

Professor Xavier leaded the two teenagers into his office and settled himself behind his desk, hands forming a steeple. "Dominique," He began. "You will be sharing a room with Miss Tara Pryde. She'll be turning fifteen today, so please be sure to wish her a happy birthday. She should be here momentarily to show you to the room and get you settled."

At that moment, the door to the office swung open, and Kish looked around, expecting to see Tara. It was Tara, but she was following Ben, Kish's fellow clone. Ben looked infuriated, and he immediately pointed at Kish. "You can NOT hide from Magneto here!" He yelled in his scratchy eleven-year-old voice. His messy mop of brown hair floated around as his silver eyes glowed behind thick glasses. "Benny, I really think you should calm down," Tara said. "But he's right. We can't hide you, Kish."

"But you have to help me," Kish said, then changed his strategy. If they didn't trust him they didn't have to. "Okay. You give me three days. If in three days I haven't earned the trust of the three PSYCHICS who live here who can clearly tell if I'm a bad person, then I'll leave." He looked down again. "Don't know where I'll _go_ but I'll leave."

Tara looked slightly uncomfortable. "Sorry to come over harshly, but based on Ben and Aaron's reactions-"  
"Aaron needs to learn how to control his anger." Interrupted the Professor firmly. "Kish has done nothing wrong in coming here to seek sanctuary, or indeed," He smiled at Kish. "Perhaps even join us."

Kish immediately brightened. "That... that would be great, Professor. Yeah... I could join you guys. I just came here for a place to sleep, but if I really can..."

"Of course you can, Kish. Ben, I'd like you to put aside your personal issues for the moment and show Kish to the guest room next to Steven's." Ben nodded slowly, eyes still glowing, albeit dimly, behind his lenses.

"Okay then!" Kish leaped to his feet and held out a hand to help up Dominique. She glared at him and pushed herself up. Wincing, Kish hissed. "ooo, okay. So it's gunna be like THAT." He looked at Tara. "I'm just not going to get a break, am I?"

She smiled widely, letting a few sparks jump from finger to finger. "No chance." she informed him.

Ben gave a curt nod in Kish's direction. "Follow me." He said abruptly, turning on his heel and stalking out of the room.

"Yeesh," Kish murmured. "I think I was safer with my angry dad. I'm gunna die here."

Ben glared at him, his eyes flashing brighter than ever. "No one is ever truly safe, Kish." he said bitterly. "Remember that."

Next: Attack!

Thank you for reading, please review, and if you would do me a favor and remember that a lot of this is not my work. If you like Dominique, message XxXFairyQueenXxX. If you like the way Aaron is portrayed, message Allg1990. I also want to hear your opinion about Kish joining the team, he was born to be a hero and I hope you agree.


	16. Attack

This is Episode Two, also co-written by XxXFairyQueenXxX and Allg1990. PLEASE REMEMBER WHAT I SAID AFTER LAST EPISODE. Thank you!

Episode Two: Attack

Later, after everyone had been shown to the rooms, Aaron walked into the kitchen to discover that Kish had already helped himself to a sandwich. He was sitting at the table looking completely miserable and if that weren't enough, he seemed to have just finished crying. Aaron fidgeted at the door, not really sure whether to come in or not. Finally he gruffly said, "Are you okay?" Kish looked up, his image-inducer eyes swollen and red.

"Yeah, I guess," Kish said quietly. "I just feel kinda weird. I mean, here I am, thinking I'm safe from people who want to kill me, and now I'm just in the same miserable dump all over again." Kish took another bite of the sandwich. Like Kurt, eating alleviated pain. "Trust me, the fact that I'm his son won't stop Magneto from killing me for letting Ben and Alaina go last time. If I won't fight you guys, he's got no use for me."

Aaron nodded, sitting down. "You've joined up." he said simply. "We'll watch your back."

"Heh-heh. Yeah, because you HAVE to. But you guys hate me." Kish chomped down on the sandwich as though it had done him personal harm. "Besides, how could I be on a team like yours? I don't even look all that weird, just a tail and some pointy ears, and still I wear this stupid thing all the time. How the heck am I supposed to fight what you guys fight?" He put the remains of the food down and rested his head on the table. "What am I doing here? I don't BELONG here. URGH!" Kish suddenly groaned, grabbing the back of his head. "Ow! ugh..." He breathed heavily, holding his head as if it were going to fall off.

"Kish! Are you okay?" Aaron started panicking. "Professor! Logan! Storm! Somebody help!" But no-one came, and Kish started shaking uncontrollably. "SOMEBODY! HELP!"  
With a smell of sulpher and some fumes, Kurt appeared in the kitchen, looking completely healthy. "What's wrong, Aaron, I heard you from the med bay..." Then he caught sight of Kish, looking completely dumbfounded. Kurt grabbed Kish's shoulders and got to eye-level. "Kish!" he shouted. "What happened? What did you do to him?!" He looked at Aaron accusingly.  
"Owowow," Kish moaned. "My head, my HEAD... What's happening to me?!"

"I didn't do anything!" Aaron said defensively. "He just started spazzing out!" Kurt turned to look at Aaron. "Stay away from him. He's been through enough."He said pointedly, and with that, he 'ported Kish away.

Dominique had heard shouting and had come downstairs to shout at the person making all the noise; her headaches were bad enough without that added to it.  
She entered the kitchen just in time to see Kish being ported away. "What happed to him?" She asked Aaron.

"I don't know." Aaron growled. "But everyone seems to think that it's my fault." With that, he walked out of the kitchen towards his room, and soon a slam of a door notified the rest of the mansion that he wouldn't be coming out anytime soon.

Dominique groaned and put her hand to her head. "Why is everyone intent on making my head explode from pain?" She mumbled taking out a packet of cigarettes and lighting one.

At that moment Tara walked in, casually sticking her finger in a socket on the way to sit down from the table. "By the way, if you're going to smoke, do it outside, or Logan will be on your case within five minutes." She warned.

Dominique looked at Tara and rolled her eyes. She opened a window and sat on the windowsill, her head sticking out while she smoked the cigarette. "There." She said to Tara.

"Ta-ha, very funny," Tara said sarcastically. "I can already tell you're gunna fit in. So what's going on with Kish? I heard some yelling. I think you like him." Tara spun around to look at Dominique as there was a loud crash. Dominique dropped her cigarette outside, and a few sparks started burning the grass.

"Um, that WAS you, wasn't it?" Tara asked nervously

……………………..

Kish woke up in the infirmary, and he couldn't believe that the pain was bad enough to cause him to pass out. As he sat up, he was wracked with another headache. Clutching at the back of his head, he managed to whisper, "Catty... Steven... in trouble..." Pushing himself out of bed, he bumped into Kurt blocking his way. "I have to help Catty and Steven," He murmured. "I can feel it... they're in trouble."

Kurt grabbed Kish's shoulders, holding him still. "Catty? Kish, calm down, speak to me. _What is wrong with my daughter?_"

Kish looked up at Kurt and realized he was asking him a question. "I... My father," He said. "I... I think he sent... Gambit, Quicksilver... Catty can't handle it, Steven's unconscious... I don't know if... Can you let me go?" He looked at Kurt with saucer eyes. "I think I'm supposed to suit up or something and you're hurting me."

Kurt shook his head. "Kish, you need to stay in..." A loud crash shook the area around their feet. Kurt fell back, and before he could move, Kish had ported away. "Kish!" he cried. "No!"  
Kish reappeared in the kitchen, where flames were licking at the windowsill. Shaking his head, he cleared his head. Who could they go to? Between whatever was happening and these flames, the mansion was set to be destroyed.  
Aaron came running in. "Aaron!" Tara cried. "Can you put out the flames?" His expression was worried but confident.  
"I don't know, but for you, Tara," he had the time to give her a quick wink, "I can try." The winds rose up around them, and soon the fire calmed, leaving only a few glowing embers. The mansion shook once again, and the four students ran to the front door.

Kish grabbed Dominique's shoulder with one hand and used his other hand to hold his head. "No! Not that way-- it's blocked off!" Seeing that Aaron and Tara were still running, he leaped onto Tara's back and tackled her to the floor. This, of course, looked like an attack to Aaron, who suddenly felt rage at this betrayal from the guy he was just starting to trust.

Dominique grabbed Aarons arm before he had a chance to do anything to Kish and pulled him out the window. "Come on you two." She called to Tara and Kish.

Aaron rubbed his arm. "You didn't have to grab me so hard." he muttered, following them.

Tara rolled her eyes. "Who cares about your arm, let's get out of here before we're trapped!" she yelled, running towards the source of the noise.

"If you wanna get out, then it works better if you go outside." Dominique called after Tara. She sighed. "Ca fille est un demeure." She said.

Kish looked around. "I gotta go get everyone OUT of there," He said softly. "The Professor can't get out by himself, Steven's hurt, Ben can't get down the stairs and the elevator's dangerous-- he knows that." Kish suddenly grinned. "This is it. This is my chance." He looked back toward Dominique. "My chance to be a hero. I'm going in. You coming?"

"Only if you never say anything about my smoking again." Dominique said climbing back through the window. "And don't do anything stupid or ou autre!"

"Come on then!" He shouted, suddenly happy and full of life. This was his big chance, his chance to prove himself. Bamfing in in front of her, he laughed. "Keep up!" He joked, then took her hand. Teleporting again, Dominique smelled sulfur and cringed. That had to be the weirdest thing she had ever felt, like being sucked into a 6 inch wide inner tube and being yanked out the other side. Kish laughed again. He liked the feeling of being a hero.

…………………..

Meanwhile, Steven's eyes fluttered open. He was on the ground, and someone's foot was on his chest. Looking up, he realized it was Gambit. He saw Quicksilver with Catty over his shoulder. "Come on," Pietro shouted. "Let's get out of here before the place explodes!"  
"Not so fast!" Steven heard from the doorway. He looked around, and to his surprise it was Kish and a girl he didn't recognize. "Put her down!" Kish shouted, pointing at the ground. "I mean it!"  
"Kish, Kish," Pietro shook his head. "We only want the girl. No one has to get hurt. We can even put out the fire if you want us to. Just let us go, little brother."  
"I'm giving you to the count of three," Kish growled, stepping forward. "One..."  
Gambit saw Pietro pull the gun and he kept it hidden behind his back as Kish counted.  
"Two..."  
Pietro prepared to shoot.  
"Three--"  
"NO!!" Remy leaped at Pietro and knocked him to the ground. "What are you, crazy? He's just a kid!"  
"He's a back-stabbing rat!"  
As they fought, Kish knelt beside Steven and Catty. "I'm gunna get you out of here," Kish said.

Dominique grabbed her head, there was too much negative energy, she felt like her head was about to explode. She fell to her knees and black energy waves burst out from her smashing holes in walls and knocking everyone around her down. "Stop it!" She screamed.

Kish saw Dominique drop as he flew backward. Struggling from a pain in his side, he pulled himself up and fought his way towards her. "Dom!" He cried. "Dominique, are you--?" He was thrown back again by another blast. Again he struggled to his feet. "Dominique!" He slowly started walking to her, reaching out a hand. When he made it, he knelt beside her and grabbed her hand. "Dominique, listen to me. Dom? Hey. Here I am, focus on me. You have to get control. Dominique?" When she didn't answer, he wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "Come on, just focus. Focus..."

Aaron looked around desperately, trying to find some way of escaping. Then he saw Catty's eyes flutter. "Catty!" he yelled, running over to where Pietro had dropped her when he fell. "Can you switch powers with Dominique? You have more control..." She nodded weakly, and he pulled her towards Dominique, Kish holding onto her to try and calm her down. Catty reached out feebly, touching her shoulder. There was a flash, and both girls screamed as their powers switched. Suddenly, Dominique disappeared with a puff of smoke, leaving Catty to try and gain control of her power.

Dominique appeared next o Aaron then disappeared again and appeared in the corner of the room. "My head isn't hurting." She said. This was the first time years that she didn't even have slight pain in her head. "What happened?"

"Catty and you switched powers." Aaron replied simply. "It's her other...talent."

"She can keep my powers, I pretty much hate them." Dominique said. "And one more question, why are we standing here talking when we should be running, from what I've heard, this place is going to explode, why are Americans such demueres."

Aaron scratched his neck. "Good point. We'd better get rid of the intruders." he replied. Then he raised his hands, winds spinning around him as he rose in the air. A huge tornado sped towards quicksilver before he could get away, and the speed demon was thrown miles away by its strength. Catty raised an eyebrow at Gambit.  
"You want a taste of that?" she asked, smiling slightly. The villain shook his head hurriedly.  
"Mais non. Besides, Remy never wanted to pick on kids. He's too nice for that." He bragged with a sly grin, and within a few minutes he was gone, over the fence before they could do anything else.

"Who was that?" Dominique asked Catty as they ran outside.

"Gambit." Catty replied grimly. "He's one of the enemy." Kurt was waiting outside.  
"Catty!" he grabbed her. "I'm so glad you're alright." She fidgeted in his hold.  
"Cut it out dad, I'm fine." she muttered.

"Well he's a cute enemy." Dominique noted. "Want your powers back?"

"Thanks," Catty said quietly, touching her arm. Dominique felt her powers flood back and the dim headache set back in. Catty seemed relieved as she felt her powers return.  
Kish rushed to Dominique's side. "Are you okay? What happened in there was... was really amazing. Your power..."  
"Okay, still not understanding why Kish is even here," Steven shouted over him.

"Can we just pretend that didn't happen, I hate my powers, if there was any more negative energy, I could have really hurt someone." Dominique said. "Did you see where I put my cigarettes?"

"Here they are," said Kish with a small smirk. He held up her cigarettes. As she reached for them, Kish pulled away playfully. "Uh-uh. I want a 'please' and I want a 'thank you'."

Dominique raised an eyebrow. "How about a slap and kick." She threatened.

"Okay, okay, I understand. No one has to be nice to me." He handed over the cigarettes. "I know I'm not very likable. I get it." He pretended to be upset but couldn't hide the small smile. "I'm used to it, actually."

"Good, then you won't mind if I treat you like dirt." Dominique said giving him a small slap on the back of his head not really hurting him. "And this is for not giving me my cigarettes straight away." She did it again.

"Ow!" He cried, grabbing her hand. "Don't... hit me right there. It's a little sore from all of the danger-predicting. That's a new power, by the way-- danger predicting by way of devastating headaches. I think I'll call it shade-sense." Being treated like dirt wasn't exactly his idea of fun, but it was enough for Kish. Being treated like dirt was better than the way his father treated him. Being treated like dirt was better than not being treated at all.

"I've some aspirin, if you want one." Dominique said lighting her cigarette.

"Thanks," he said, holding out his hands in desperation. Taking them, he suddenly felt dizzy. "Woo-oo, what the heck ARE these? Strength ten thousand?" Realizing that the dizziness had nothing to do with the pills, he turned to look back at the house. Then he looked at everyone who had gotten outside. The Professor was fine, all of the X-Men save Scott and Jean who were on a mission, Mission X was all here... then he glanced back at the house. "Oh, no."  
"Someone here can tell me why Kish is here, that doesn't seem too hard," Steven said loudly.  
"Oh, no," Kish said again.  
"Oh, no what?" Tara said with a smirk. "Did you leave your dolls in there? Afraid they're up in smoke by now?"  
"No..." Kish looked around at everyone. "I think the little guy's still in there. The little boy who isn't on your team."  
"What little boy?" Dominique asked, looking at the rest of the group.  
"Johnny!" Alaina cried.  
"I'll get him," Kish said quietly, suddenly disappearing in a puff of smoke.

"NO, you stupid little--" Kurt shouted. "God dammit, that boy needs a LEASH, I swear!!" Despite how angry he sounded, Kurt seemed worried. The only little brother he might ever have and he kept trying to get himself killed.

"Oh for Gods sake, somebody stop him from getting himself killed, I want to do it myself." Dominique said.

"I wouldn't mind if he didn't come out." Aaron muttered darkly. Tara shocked him lightly.  
"Aaron! Don't say that! If you hadn't noticed, he's been trying to save us." she pointed out.  
"I don't need saving." Aaron retorted.

Dominique hit Aaron on the back of the head. "Se taire." She said.

"Ow!" he yelped, rubbing his head. "You didn't have to go that far!" Catty hit him in the same place. "You deserved it." she told him.

As he turned to face her, Tara put in a blow too. "That's for not giving Kish a chance." She warned. Then she lightly kissed him on the cheek. "And that's for getting rid of Pietro."  
Catty rolled her eyes, linking her arm with Stephen's. "Get a room."

Dominique did a gagging motion. "Now, can someone get that idiot out here so I can kick his ass." She said.

Suddenly, Kish re-appeared, holding a coughing Johnny in his arms. Johnny was wrapped in a damp blanket, but it still looked as though his hair had gotten singed. Kish looked much worse, covered in ash and soot and coughing so hard it sounded like he was going to throw up. "Here," Kish wheezed. "Little brat was trapped in the game room." Kish dropped to his knees and coughed some more, head low.  
"This is my fault, I was babysitting him," Alaina sobbed, hugging Johnny as he ran to her. "I'm sorry!"  
"There goes the house," muttered Tara. "On my birthday."

Can they save the house? Will Kish be accepted into the team? NEXT: Memories of Pain

Please review, everybody. Remember, credit the right people for the right things.


	17. Memories of Pain

This is Episode Three, co-written by XxXFairyQueenXxX, Allg1990, and JaxWin. I think this will be the last co-written Mission X story for now, but it was really fun and I hope to do more Co-writing. Thanks to everyone who played in the game!

Episode Three: Memories of Pain

"Put the kid down and stand up." Dominique commanded Kish. When he did she hit him in the arm. "What did I say about doing something stupid?!" She shouted angrily, trying her hardest not to curse him out in French. "What do you call jumping into a burning building alone to save a kid?! There is a Pyrokinetic and an experienced teleporter RIGHT HERE!"

"Ow," Kish mumbled. "You said not to do anything stupid or I'd be dead... but the kid was stuck and I..."

"I know, I just like hitting you." Dominique said with a smirk. She softened and knelt down beside Johnny "You okay petite?" She asked him.

"Uh-huh," Johnny said. "And guess what? Something really cool happened to me! There I was, standing in the game room, and all of a sudden this beam was gunna fall on me and then ZOOOM! I moved SO fast, and---"  
"Johnny, stop lying," Catty said.  
"I'm not, I'm telling the truth! I zoomed out of the way like speedy Gonzales!"

"Good, now, I'm sorry, but I don't really feel like hanging around and watching a house burn so if anyone needs me I'll be in town and a piece of advice don't need me." Dominique said standing up.

"Hey, Dominique," Tara said softly. "You're part of the team now. You can't go all lone-wolf on us. Besides, I'm sure Steven and Aaron can put this out." She glanced at Xavier, who was looking up at his house. He seemed to be in a slight amount of shock.  
"Yeah sure," Aaron grinned.

Tyler grabbed his shoulder. "I think Steven's a little less sure." He said.  
"Naw, I can do this," Steven said softly. "Urgh, here goes nothing..."  
"Let me help," Storm raised her arms and lightning flashed.  
"Help them out," Catty said encouragingly to Dominique. "Go on, your powers should be able to create a dampening field. Try it out!"  
"If you want, I can throw a temper tantrum to boost you up," Kish grinned.

Dominique sighed, she hated using her powers. "Oui." She said. "I'll try but I'm not promising anything." She said holding her hands out and trying to concentrate all the negative energy that was lingering around. At first it seemed to be working but then it backfired knocking Dominique off her feet. "See, I can't do it." She said, her tone sounded like she was getting mad at Catty for making her try but she was actually mad at herself. She quickly stood up, her face looking like it was made of stone.

Kish grabbed her hand and squeezed lightly. "Try it now," he whispered. "I'll help you. I've got a little magical talent that I learned from…"

Dominique pulled her hand from his. She was intent on NOT trying again. "No." She said, her voice had taken a dangerous tone, as if that one word had said, touch me again and I will beat you until you're dead.

Kish narrowed his eyes. "Who's giving up NOW?"

Dominique grabbed his arm and pulled it behind his back yanking dangerously. "Lets get one thing straight, I don't do guilt trips, got it, my powers can be fuelled by my own rage too and at the rate I'm going, I feel like chopping off one of your limbs very soon. Now I am going to town, I need some time by myself." She said trying not to let her anger get the best of her.

Kish shoved her off and looked incredibly angry for someone like him. "Don't you touch me!" He shouted. "Not you, I trust you! You can't be like him!" Shoving her again, he found himself being held back by Aaron.

"Dude, calm down," He said.  
"How could you be like him?" Kish asked quietly. "You... I felt something from you. You can't be like him."

Dominique was actually quite surprised of what she had done herself. "I'm sorry, it's my powers, they cause mood swings, I have to go." She stuttered running off.

The Professor rolled up behind them "She will come back when she is ready." he said solemnly. "She needs time."

…………………

Later, as Dominique brooded over coffee an hour or so later, she heard the door of the coffee shop open. Standing there, as if he wasn't a mutant and had nothing to be ashamed of, was a tall pale boy with huge black wings. Following closely was Alaina, hurriedly looking around the room before she got comfortable. "It's okay, Alaina," She heard him say. "None of your friends are here."  
"Are you sure?" She asked worriedly. "Cuz if daddy found out I was going out with you it would be a disaster... Aw, man!"  
"What?"  
"Dominique's here. The new girl? What if she tells...?"

Dominique saw Alaina come in, she didn't know who she was with but didn't want to talk to anyone at the moment. She put her head down hoping Alaina wouldn't recognize her. One thought kept running in her mind. "You messed it up, the one person that doesn't treat you like dirt and you let your anger get the better of you, now he thinks you're a total psycho and you know what, you are." Dominique sighed.

"Um..." Dominique looked up to see Alaina standing over her. "Um... hi. I just wanted to ask... you won't tell anyone I was here, will you?" Then she looked startled. "Are you okay? You're mascara, it's..."

"The heat in here, it makes my mascara run." Dominique lied. "Why would I tell anyone you were in here, your business is your business."

"I just... see, I'm not supposed to be here. I just wanted to ask and make sure." She smiled. "Kish'll forgive you, I know him. He's a real sweetie, and a sucker for pretty girls. You should be okay."  
"Hi," The boy said. "I'm Mike. So, you're the new Mission X member. Alaina told me about you."  
"He's sorta on the other side," Alaina muttered.  
Dominique felt strange around Mike-- It felt as though he was made of the dark energy she released. The darkness seemed to just ebb off of him like he was pumping it into the air. He smiled and held out a hand. Dominique felt the darkness and realized he must have the same power as her. Dominique restrained from grabbing her head in pain.  
"Hi." She said to Mike not shaking his hand, she would probably end up squeezing it from pain. "Like I said your business is your business, privacy is probably the one and only thing I respect." She said with a half-hearted laugh "And I'm not upset, I told you, it's the heat."

"You are upset, I can always tell." Alaina put her hand on Dominique's shoulder. "We all have bad days. As a member of the team, you deserve to have a little help. That's really all that being a team means. We help each other out." Mike pulled his hand away and looked at it as if it were throbbing. "I'll see you later, okay?" Dominique shrugged Alaina's hand off her shoulder.  
"I am not upset." She muttered stubbornly.

"Okay, bye," Alaina smiled again and dragged Mike to a table at the other end of the room. Dominique sighed in relief as her headache faded.

Dominique sat quietly for another half hour and watched Alaina and Mike leave, almost jealous of the sweet little girl. Everyone just LOVED her. She wondered why she couldn't be a princess like Alaina so she wouldn't have to deal with everyone else hating her.  
"Hi," she heard someone say softly. She glanced over and saw Kish sitting across from her. His sudden appearance startled her. "Sorry, is this seat taken?"

Dominique bit her lip and nodded slowly. "How did you know I was here?"

"I guessed," He said. She wished he would smile, he looked so depressed. "I saw Alaina walk out of here. Mike was talking about you and I have super hearing."

"Sorry about earlier." She muttered.  
"What did you say?" Kish asked her.

"I'm not saying it again." Dominique said returning to her stubborn self.  
He finally let a small smile escape. "Okay, whatever you want." Even that little smile seemed to brighten him up a little, though, as he had been the whole time she had known him, he seemed so sad. "I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have pushed you like that. It's just... when I start trusting someone, it gets really easy to start looking for reasons not to. It's hard for me to get close to someone, and I get completely devastated when someone I trust starts to act like..." He stopped talking and looked away. "Anyway, I'm sorry. And I'm not saying you're like my father. He was always so angry and he always treated me like the dirt under his feet."

Dominique nodded. "That's okay, I have trouble with that kind of stuff too, I'm just not used to the whole friend thing." She said.

"I have had one friend in my whole miserable existence before you, and now, we're on two different sides." Kish sighed. "I guess I kind of freaked when I thought you really didn't like me at all, that you were just trying to get me to shut up like everyone else. Mike never did that to me, he LISTENED, you know? I think you might be like that with a little thawing, and I definitely can listen to you."

"Thanks." Dominique said. "And just so you know, vous etre non boue sous mon pieds." (Translation: You're not dirt under my feet) Dominique added, too proud to say it in English.

"Oh, great, you probably said the single nicest thing anyone has ever said to me and I can't even understand what you're saying," Kish moaned, putting his forehead on the table.

"Don't be so sure." Dominique joked.

"Okay, so now you have to teach me French. Deal?" Kish grinned. "This thing will never work if I can't understand you half the time. Either that or I start speaking in German out of spite."

"I'll think about it." Dominique smiled slightly. "And if you start speaking German I'm going to have to beat you up."

"Okay, won't do that either," Kish laughed loud enough for the people at the next table to glance at the two of them. "I have to start making a list of the things I can't do to keep you happy. Boy, you are really high-maintenance."

"I'm not high-maintenance, I just know what I like." Dominique said, her face returning to its stubborn look.

"Yeah, well, I don't," Kish rested his chin on his arms, looking depressed again. "I have no idea what I want, or what I'll do. I'm not a person, you know."

"Nothing's wrong with being a clone!" Alaina said cheerfully, appearing suddenly and taking a seat next to Kish. "Hmm, maybe I shouldn't have said the c-word so loud..."

"Ach Verdammter mist," Kish shouted, jumping in his seat. "Geeze, you shouldn't sneak up on people like that. And yes, there is something very wrong about... about being a... C WORD," He finished with a flourish. "Great, now my new friend here can make fun of me and I'll be stuck with zero friends again. You probably think I'm a freak now."

"You two are now official friends? I'm surprised," Alaina said without looking surprised at all. "I didn't think Dominique was the type to put up with annoying ball of fuzz like you, Kish," she added teasingly.

Dominique hit Kish on the arm. "That's for thinking I'd be so shallow, I don't care if you're a clone, all I care about is you don't drive me crazy and try not to take it too personally when I hit you." She said and hit him again. "That one was for speaking German."

"Ow! I'm sorry, I revert back to German when I'm startled," He cried. "And I am not a ball of fuzz. The only fur I have is the fur on my tail, thank you very much. I am only PART Kurt Wagner."

"Of course, Kish," Alaina said smiling wryly. "How could I forget that only your tail is furry when our house just about burned down? And by the way, I think it'll be okay to go back to the Institute by now; Catty called a little earlier to say the fire's been taken care of, so unless you still feel like hanging out here and loading up on caffeine..."

"I don't want to go back there..." He frowned. "They still want to kill me. But hey! Might as well get the murdering over with, right? Let's just go home, and you two can laugh while I get tossed between Ben and Aaron like a ball."

"Don't worry, I won't let them hurt you, that's my job." Dominique said. She wasn't feeling too good about going back herself not after the little display she put on earlier. "I need a cigarette." She muttered.

"Can I have one?" Kish moaned.  
"You don't SMOKE!" Alaina shrieked in horror.  
"I was thinking about starting," He said. Then he laughed quietly. "That or killing myself, whichever one calms me down faster. But hey, I don't need suicide, that's what my father and smoking are for. I was just kidding, I don't really want one," He waved away a cigarette. "...yet."

Dominique's head pain spiked for a moment as Kish put his head down on the table. "Who's pissed off?" She asked. Her headache annoyed her.

"Nobody," Kish mumbled, rubbing his side. "Oh, no wait, there's me that's mad, so... still nobody. Sorry, I'll calm down." He looked up and smiled weakly.

"You have self confidence issues, don't you?" Alaina said pulling Kish up lightly. _Mental Note: Do not get angry around Dominique. She gets REALLY annoyed and is reaching for a cigarette..._ **now.**

"Yeah, self-confidence sort of got beat out of me," He said with an almost creepily cheery smile. "That's why I am immune to Dominique punching me."

"Hey I never hit you hard." Dominique said fidgeting with her hands, there was a sign that said no smoking in the cafe and she was really craving one. "Come on, let's go." She said.

"Yeah, I'm sure the others probably want our help cleaning up the Institute," Alaina said with a sigh. "So much for my date with Mike."

"Come on, let's just take a shortcut," Kish took the arms of both girls and teleported out. When they reappeared, they were standing in the living room at Xavier's. It looked pretty bad. Alaina felt nauseous, and she turned to tell Kish never to do that again. Kish collapsed to his knees, wincing and holding his side.

Dominique knelt down beside Kish. "What's wrong?" She asked, her voice concerned.

"My... my side… it hurts," He said quietly. "It's no big deal, just an old... Argh!" He growled and pushed her hand away from his ribs. She had been trying to touch it and just her fingers grazing against the spot caused him agony. "Don't... don't touch it... it hurts. I'm okay." Getting up, he almost fell again. "I guess it was Aaron's little wind blast earlier. Irritated it, I guess."

"Come on, idiot." Dominique said, holding him up. "Sit down." She ordered, leading him to the couch.

At that moment Aaron burst in. "Kish? Where have you been? The Professor and Kurt are worried sick, they want you to get up to the med bay NOW." Then, kind of sheepishly, "I'm sorry about what I said and did. I didn't take the time to get to know you..." he trailed off.

"Uh, is everyone in this town trying to make me murder them, stop shouting." Dominique snapped at Aaron. "Bete tache."

Aaron stepped back, offended. "Hey, I've just _apologized_, so there's no need to be harsh." he snapped back.

"Everybody be quiet," Kish moaned. "I'm fine, I don't have to go to the infirmary..." Holding his side, Kish hissed again.

"I disagree," Alaina said pulling Kish up off the couch and trying to support his weight. "I can't have my... how exactly would you say we're related? Oh never mind, let's just get you to the infirmary!"

"Lemmie see, I know this one," Kish groaned as she bumped her arm clumsily into his side. "Mystique's DNA was used for half of you and a third of me... So what? Half-siblings? OW! Cut that out."

"SORRY!" Alaina said blushing deeply. "This trip would probably be easier and faster if my half-sibling could teleport us to the infirmary..." Kish shook his head weakly and Alaina breathed a sigh of relief (she didn't really feel like taking another trip by bamf). "Then again we could also get some help from the team mates currently engaged in a glaring contest," She finished.

"Yeah, you could help, you know," Kish snapped in the direction of Aaron and Dominique. "Excruciating pain here."

Aaron rolled his eyes. "Whatever." he said, going to grab Kish's other arm and hoist it over his shoulder. Then he looked down at the boy's face. "Happy now?"

"Unf... Gott, that really hurts..." Kish scrunched up his face in pain. "I though it had healed, but geeze... thanks, Aaron."

"No problem." replied the green-haired teen modestly, grinning. "Besides, what are teammates for? Apart from beating you instead of greeting you, of course." he added as an afterthought.

"Heh-heh, you funny," Kish laughed, then scared Aaron half to death when he started coughing up blood. Alaina shrieked and let go, causing Aaron to lose his grip. Kish fell to his hands and knees. "Hurts..." He whispered, struggling to get to his feet. He heard a voice above him. 'You ignorant, incompetent, worthless child! Get up and face me like a man!' He grimaced. "Father…" He whispered.

Aaron swore under his breath, picking up the surprisingly light clone and starting to sprint towards the med bay. "Don't worry, Kish." he said, trying to keep a positive face while looking at the boy drifting in and out of consciousness. "You're going to be fine. You'll make it. Damn it, Kish! Keep holding on!" He pleaded.

"Where are we going?" Kish moaned. "Father... father, are we going to the park...?"

Alaina, who had sprinted ahead of Aaron to get Nightcrawler, teleported in front of Aaron with the instructor in a poof of smoke. Nauseated, she bent down to clutch her stomach, but found herself face-to-face with a dazed and hallucinating Kish. "Kish!! Oh my God, I'm sorry. I should've gotten Nightcrawler here faster," Alaina said close to tears.

"Father…" Kish whispered. "Father, please, please stop…"  
Kurt never reverted to German, and he never cursed. This time he did both. He grabbed Kish and teleported him away.

……………..

Aaron, Alaina, and Dominique had been sitting in the waiting room for over an hour. No one had come out to tell them about how Kish was. Dominique kept glancing at Aaron, who was tapping his foot with his arms crossed over his chest. The noise was getting annoying.

Alaina looked up and saw the murderous glint in Dominique's eyes and decided to intervene before Aaron wound up with bruises or worse. "I say we plot revenge. It's not normally my style but... but nobody should be able to hurt my half-sibling like that! I want to find out who did that to Kish."

Ben, startling everybody, walked in. "Did WHAT to Kish?" He asked in his normal quiet, scratchy voice. "Revenge against who?"

"Kish's all beat up and Alaina's out to avenge him," Aaron explained and Alaina nodded vigorously.

"Kish got all beat up?" Ben looked at Alaina and then at Aaron. "What did you do?" Ben laughed at the mortified and defensive face that Aaron made. "Just kidding. Did anybody call his friend?"

"I'll call Mike!" Alaina volunteered in an attempted calm voice. She flipped open her cell phone and willed her fingers to dial the whole number instead of using speed dial like she usually did. "Hello, _Blackangel_," Alaina spoke in a staged detached voice, hoping Mike would understand she was with company. "We just thought you should know about Kish."

"Alaina, what...?" Mike began. Then he understood. "Oh. OH. What... what about Kish?"

Ben snickered.

"Well, he collapsed and we don't know what's wrong…" Alaina continued. The phone hung up quickly. "Blackangel? Blackangel? Ugh, the jerk." She closed her cell phone. "Hung up on me," she explained to Aaron.

……………….

Kish opened his eyes slowly and found himself surrounded by a muffling blackness. He felt pain, but he felt it in his mind, not in his side. He _remembered_ the pain, could feel the agony in his head. He squinted at a figure standing over him, and soon realized it was his father.

"F-father…?" He whispered.

"You were a mistake, Aquarius," Magneto growled. "Everything about you is a mistake. You are completely useless to me. If I have no need for you and you have decided to run off and join Xavier, then so be it. I will not hesitate to terminate you."

"Father, it's not like that," Kish struggled to sit up.

"I'm through with you, Aquarius," Magneto turned, cape fluttering.

"No!" Kish reached out a hand. "Father… don't leave me! Father, don't go!"

"Listen to you cry like a child," Magneto turned his head to look at him and sneered. "You're supposed to be a weapon. Act like one. Act like the god you are, Aquarius. Only then will I acknowledge you. As of now, I see no son in you. You are nothing more than a traitor. As far as I know personally, I only have one son now."

"Father…" Kish sobbed as Magneto disappeared. "Father, wait… don't leave me… what did I do…?"

"Kish?" He heard a voice above him again, a girl's voice. "Kish… Kish? Wake up. Kish, wake up before I hit you. Call me Dom, get mad for no reason, steal my cigarettes… anything. Just please wake up."

"Dominique…?" Kish smiled weakly. "Where are you…?" The darkness was fading and he could see her. Behind her was Alaina and Aaron, looking worried. "Oh. Heh-heh. There you guys are."

"Why were you calling your father?" Alaina asked.

"What? Oh, oh, nothing," He said, looking up at Dominique and smiling. "Just a dream. A painful memory gotten over."

NEXT: Tell Me Lies

Thanks everybody! If you liked Alaina in this chapter, that's because her biggest supporter played her. Three cheers for JaxWin, my Milaina fan! Also three cheers to Allg1990 for her dramatic dialogue for Aaron and to XxXFairyQueenXxX for keeping her cool with Dominique. Kish is all my fault.


	18. Tell Me Lies

This is actually written by me, and I hope it's good. I need a little change from all the depression of Kish's whacked-out life.

Episode Four: Tell Me Lies

"Mom, stop showing off!" Catty cried desperately as Alaina knelt to listen to Amanda's stomach. She was five months pregnant and Catty was angry. "You are so, so not helping, Alaina."

"But I want to hear… oh, wow! It's kicking!" Alaina squealed happily. "I can hear it! This is so neat, Mrs. Wagner."

Catty sighed. Well, at least Alaina was happy. Catty's father had been running around like a chicken with it's head cut off, trying to clear out his little office and turn it into a nursery. It was as though he had never been a father before.

"Move," She heard behind her. She turned and saw Aaron's back. He was helping Kurt move the desk out. As she jumped out of the way, Catty glared at her father.

"Dad, why are you lifting that?"

"It's gotta be moved, Cat," He groaned as he moved past.

"But you're not supposed to put any strain on your heart," Catty snapped. "Dad, this baby cannot put you in the hospital, okay?"

"The baby's not going to put me in the hospital," He growled and let his side of the desk down. Aaron yelled and struggled to put his side on the floor. "At this rate, YOU will. Catty, just stop trying to command my daily life. I think I know just a tad bit more than you do."

Catty stared at him for a moment and gaped. Kurt stared right back, then, realizing what he had just said, he blinked. "Catty, I…"

"Don't even try, dad," Catty said quietly as she turned around. With a flip of her wild red hair, her bedroom door slammed shut. Aaron hissed and finally managed to put down the desk. Kurt watched the door, then reached down to grab his end.

"Come on, Aaron," He said. Aaron let out an audible groan.

…………………….

"Are you sure this is safe?" Sara asked as Tyler lead her and Kish into the danger room. "I mean, shouldn't we have a supervisor or something?"

"It's okay, we'll be fine," Tyler waved her concern away, smiling. "Just trust me, alright?"

"Trust you, ha," Kish mumbled. "I shouldn't even be out of bed. But no, you drag me out of my peaceful sanctuary to a death trap. You know, I've never even been IN here."

"Hey, it was you or Dominique, and she didn't want to come," Tyler shrugged and looked up at the observatory. "Danger Room, set up mission 5:7, please."

"Um, is it too late to change my mind?" Kish whimpered. "I want to go back to bed…" He shrieked as a laser beam flew right past his head and leaped to the side. "Oh, spit, man, that wasn't fair!" He shouted.

Sara blocked a laser blast with her sword. "Hey, I could get used to… Tyler, there's a cannon behind and in front, three laser blasters to your right and seven to Kish's left!"

"How the hell do you know?" Kish moaned, dodging another blast that barely missed his head.

"I've done this one before and I remember the pattern," Sara cried, dodging and then reflecting a blast back to the gun. It exploded marvelously. "Oh, yeah. Give me another gun, Tyler!"

"Take the one on Kish's back!" Tyler said, Proton Cannon knocking out three blasters. Kish teleported out of the way as Sara charged. Slicing it in half, her sword gleamed in the light of Tyler's cannon blasts.

Kish, getting his balance back, realized that he was surrounded by two cannon blasters and a missile launcher. He watched them power up, and with a grin wide on his face, he leaped straight up and out of the way at the last second. He landed and looked at his charred assailants, laughing hysterically. "Stupid computers," He shouted. "Is that all you got?!"

He instantly regretted his words. Tyler and Sara whirled around to see what Kish was gawking at. The wall to the danger room had opened up, and a gigantic robot stumbled out, locking onto Kish immediately. Kish was frozen where he stood, looking up at the mechanical monster as it aimed.

"Kish, MOVE!!!" Tyler shouted as he pushed him onto the ground. The beam passed over their heads. "Why did you say that…" Tyler moaned as he stood up. Sara was being targeted and she tried to move out of the way. Kish glanced up and saw the hit coming. Teleporting to her side, the blast hit.

Kish had his eyes squinted shut, and after a moment, he opened an eye quizzically. The blast hadn't hit them. They were surrounded by a glowing blue translucent dome, and the blast had gone over it. Sara was on her knees, gasping for air.

"Tyler, did you…?" Kish began, but Tyler was busy blasting at the robot to hear him. If Tyler didn't make the shield, and he hadn't made the shield… he looked at Sara, still gasping. Her nose was bleeding. "Sara, are you okay?" Kish put a hand on her shoulder. Her eyes opened and the shield fell. At the same moment, the proton blasts felled the monstrosity.

"What… what happened?" Sara whispered. Then she fell forward into Kish's chest.

"Sara?" Tyler walked over to them and knelt beside Kish. "Is she okay?"

"I don't know," Kish said quietly. "I think she put up that shield. I didn't know she could do that."

"Me neither," Tyler shook his head. "Come on, let's get her to the infirmary."

………………………..

Dominique wandered the mall aimlessly, not really paying attention to where she was going, not really thinking about anything in particular. Her head was throbbing dully, as per usual, but she didn't mind at the moment. For some crazy reason, all she could think about was the argument she and Kish had that morning.

She had been eating breakfast when Kish walked in, cheery as ever, and for some reason that had annoyed her. He chattered away about nothing, just talking for the sake of talking, and she tried to ignore him. She could swear that he just loved the sound of his own voice. Kish then proceeded to hug her from behind as she tried to leave, saying that he was glad to be her friend. She had pushed him off and whirled around, glaring at him. Then, she even surprised herself by telling him exactly where she thought his head was and yelling at him to just shut up and leave her alone.

Dominique didn't think he would get angry, because when people yelled at him he usually got depressed and made a mental note not to do that again. Instead, his ears had gone red and he shouted right back, telling her where he thought she should go and how he was going to send her there. He yelled violently with hand gestures in a way that was unnatural for him.

If that wasn't bad enough, she let her anger get the best of her and continued the argument with a shove.

She hadn't realized that she had pushed hard enough to knock him to the floor. The next thing she knew he was pushing himself to his feet, looking at her with sad eyes as he left the kitchen, slamming the door behind him.

He had seemed fine when she saw him again an hour after the fight, but he hadn't looked at her.

Dominique felt a little strange, feeling an emotion she wasn't used to. She sat on a small bench and sighed, thinking that maybe she was just tired from all the walking. Her chest felt tight and her head ached. Rubbing at her eyes, she finally saw that she was crying. Even though no one who knew her could see her, she got angry at the tears and wiped them away. There was no reason to cry. She hadn't done anything wrong. Kish had been annoying, Kish yelled at her, Kish was really light, it was easy to knock him over…

She shook her head. She was telling herself lies.

…………………..

Hank finished checking up Sara and stood back. "You seem fine," He said, looking her over. "Can you tell me what happened again?"

"We were in the danger room, just training a little, and this big robot comes out," Sara recited. "I almost got hit and I made this see-through shield over myself. I remember being really tired." She shook her head. "That's all."

"I think what we're looking at is an extension of your powers," Dr.McCoy put a hand on her shoulder. "It's nothing to worry about, it's perfectly normal for powers to still be growing. Your body is still adjusting, it makes perfect sense that your powers would emerge as slowly as you grow taller."

"Thanks," Sara smiled and nodded. "What should I do in the meantime?"

"Just let whatever comes flow through you. If you feel sick again, come see me."

"Okay, bye!" Sara said, getting up and going back to Tyler and Kish, waiting by the door.

As the kids left, Dr.McCoy turned to the person in the corner. Amanda had been waiting there, looking nervous. "Did the tests go through?" She asked, fidgeting with her watch.

"They went through," Henry sighed and sat down. "I could tell Kurt for you, if you want."

"I don't think he should know right now," Amanda said softly, looking down. "I don't want him in here from another heart attack."

"When will you tell him that this pregnancy might kill you?" Hank adjusted his glasses. He was trying to be optimistic, using 'might' instead of 'will'. They didn't know what would happen yet.

"I don't know… soon," Amanda looked back up at Henry with teary eyes. "Soon."

…………………….

Kish sat down at the table across from Mike, looking around the food court. "Am I still safe?" He asked.

"Yeah, he doesn't know you've switched sides yet," Mike took a bit out of his burger and offered Kish some French fries. He immediately began devouring them. Mike laughed. "Dude! Slow down!"

"Sorry," Kish mumbled. "Had a danger room session. Not pretty, trust me."

"Hey," Mike nudged him, looking across the court. "Look. It's your girlfriend."

"She is NOT my girlfriend," Kish said angrily, putting his head down. Mike watched as Dominique looked up suddenly. "She's just… she's just my friend. I think I screwed that up this morning though. How do you get along with someone like her?"

"Same way you get along with Luna, just give her what she wants and leave her alone," Mike smiled. Kish was watching Dominique scribble in her notebook with a face far from angry. "Go talk to her."

"I can't do that, she hates me," Kish moaned.

"Go, she looks upset," Mike pulled the French fries away. "YOU look upset. Just go sit with her and see what happens."

"Fine…" Kish grumbled, getting up. "This doesn't work, you're buying me a burger."

"And if it does?" Mike sneered.

"I buy her a burger."

Kish walked over to her table and sat down across from her. She didn't look up. He waited for a moment, then waved. "Hi."

Dominique jumped, startled. "Kish…" She frowned. "Why are you sitting here?"

"Just thought maybe we should talk about this morning." Kish looked at his hands, ashamed that he was trying to talk to her.

"It's my fault," They said at the same time. Dominique blushed, and Kish felt his ears warm up. "No, really," Dominique said. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled, Mon Ami."

"YOU shouldn't have yelled?" Kish laughed. "I shouldn't have yelled."

"And I shouldn't have pushed you," she retorted.

They were both quiet for a minute. Then Kish smiled warmly, melting Dominique's headache so fast she got dizzy. She blinked in shock. Her headache was gone, completely gone, just because that stupid Kish smiled. Stupid emotional projector person. "Then we were both wrong," he said. "I forgive you. Do you forgive me?"

"Yes," Dominique nodded, trying to look stubborn. "But only on one condition."

"And that would be…?"

"You buy me this top I've been wanting for ages. It's seventeen dollars and I already spent my allowance on cigarettes." She smiled wryly. She knew he would do it, he was so easy.

"Okay, sure," Kish smiled and stood up, nodding. "Come on, I'll get it for you right now."

"Okay." Dominique took his hand and dragged him away.

Mike watched them go and smiled, shaking his head. The goof. He still had no idea why Kish was his best friend. His cell phone started singing Alaina's favorite song and he quickly picked it up. "Lainie?" He asked.

"Hi!" Her chipper voice made him smile. "Guess what? Sara's getting new powers, Mrs. Wagner's baby is kicking, and I made cookies. Also, Tyler's building a GPS thingie for mutants. Isn't that cool?"

"That's great!" Mike laughed. "Is this my news report of the hour?"

"Yep. Well, talk to you later, angel."

"Bye, pretty kitty," He said as she hung up. He glanced around and slowly began to text someone.

_Swordflash is getting new abilities, possible threat. Wartech building mutant tracker not run on telepathy. Terminate the machine?_

He waited for the reply. His cell phone beeped moments later.

_Take it down._

NEXT: Camping is for Brave Men!

Please review!


	19. Camping Is For Brave Men

This starts out as cute and fluffy, but it got all dark and scary and depressing somehow. Sorry, and just to warn you this chapter isn't for the faint of heart, It's a really, REALLY deep inside look at the characters you all have come to know and love. Please review this one especially!!!

Episode 5: Camping is for Brave Men

"So, you ARE sure we'll be safe out there alone, right?" Kish said as the Professor watched him pack.

"I'm quite sure you will all be perfectly safe," the old man smiled and put his hands together. "What are you afraid of? You are all mutants of great skill, with combat training and experience. What could a wolf or a bear do to you?"

"It's not the animals, Professor," Said Aaron from the doorway. "I heard the west woods were haunted."

"The ghost of the west woods?" Xavier laughed. "I doubt such a thing is real. Really, Kish, you shouldn't be frightened. Don't listen to Aaron, he's only attempting to convince you not to go."

"What? No I'm not," Aaron said defensively. "I just think, you know, with how jumpy Kish is and all, he shouldn't go out into the west woods with us. Ooooooo," He added with a flourish.

"Shut up!" Kish cried, throwing a pillow at his head. "I'm not scared, I'll go."

"Great, thanks a lot, Professor. Now he's gunna ruin the whole trip," Aaron muttered. "He's gunna whine and complain the whole time and none of us are going to have a good time."

"That's enough," Xavier turned his wheelchair around to face him. "This little field trip can be called off and you can celebrate your eighteenth birthday here doing chores."

"What?!" Aaron objected.

"Or you can stop trying to get your teammate to back out of the trip," the Professor glanced at Kish and winked. Now Kish HAD to go, whether he wanted to or not, because the guy was sticking his neck out for him.

"Ugh… fine," Aaron groaned. He turned and left, grumbling under his breath.

…………………

"No."

"Oh, come ON, Dom, you gotta go. I'm defenseless without you," Kish intercepted her attempted escape from the kitchen. "If I go out into the woods alone with Aaron and Ben I won't come back alive! There will be a tragic accident and no one will miss me." He got to his knees to beg. "Please!"

Dominique glared at him. "Get up. I don't do camping." She pulled him to his feet and punched him in the arm.

"Ow! Okay, what was THAT for?" He sighed dramatically.

She punched his arm again. "The first one was for being a wuss."

"And what was the other one for?"

She smiled and flipped her hair as she left. "Don't call me Dom."

"Will you go?" He followed her into the living room in desperation. "Are… are you going? Please say you're going."

"Fine, but you owe me," She faced away from him as she sat on the couch so she could grin.

"What do I owe you, anything, anything you want!"

"I haven't decided yet," She said breezily, flipping her hair again.

………………………

"New York, Bayville, West Woods," Sara recited from the back of the bus. "Thick tree growth and brush, rare forest fires and multiple forms of wild life, including deer, black bear, rabbit…"

"Be quiet," Aaron called from the front.

"No, no, she's getting to the good part." Ben was on his knees on the seat in front of Sara, looking at her with wide eyes. "Sshh, Aaron, I want to hear this."

"…and several large and tracked packs of wolves," Sara continued, glaring at Aaron. "There are many species of plant and insect life, but the most famous part of the Forest is the tales of hauntings deep in the West Woods."

"Wait, wait, 'hauntings', plural?" Kish said nervously, turning around in his seat to look back at her. "Ow! Dominique, that actually hurt!"

"Kindly sit down, Ben, Kish," Jean called from the driver's seat. "I don't want to have to turn around because someone went flying through a windshield.

"Yes, hauntings, plural," Ben said, moving to sit next to Sara. "Go on."

" Stories have ranged anywhere between blood painted on the trees to figures in white dresses wandering in between the trees. Some campers…"

"Like us," Ben grinned pointedly at Kish, who groaned.

"…have even reported hearing a woman sing just beyond the light of their campfires while they slept. As legend goes, the forest has been the death place of many people over the course of history, the most famous being the White Lady of the West Woods." Sara stopped to look around. Everyone had moved to the back to listen to her recite her research, even Kish, who sat very close to Dominique and appeared to be annoying her. "The White Lady was supposedly murdered along with her husband on her wedding day. They went to a small cabin in the forest for their honeymoon due to their shared love of wildlife and trees. As they arrived and stepped out of the small car they had driven down one of the only trails, they were killed by a madman known as the Jackal with his bare hands, and he soon after strangled himself with the White Lady's veil. They say that to this day, the White Lady searches for her beloved husband, still dressed in her tattered but still beautiful wedding dress. The woods are also said to be haunted by the Jackal, but no witnesses were ever available to back up sightings of the wild looking man with a veil around his neck."

Kish looked very pale and was now hugging Dominique's arm. Once she realized this, Dominique shoved him off. "Baby," She muttered.

"What about the blood on the trees?" Tara asked, eyes as wide as saucers.

"Some say it's the White Lady, marking her way so she knows where she's looked," Sara said, closing her eyes and pulling forward the memory of the book she had read. "Others say it's the Jackal, attempting to chase away trespassers."

"Can we turn around?" Tyler suddenly cried.

………………….

"Okay, here's how this is going to work," Jean said, folding her arms and looking at the group. They were pretty far into the woods. "I'll stay here with the bus for the two days. Because this trip is in honor of Aaron's birthday tomorrow, he will split you into two teams of five."

"No question," Aaron grinned. "The original five are with me. Catty, Steven, Ben and Tara."

Tyler glowered as Tara skipped over and then turned to shrug at him.

"Guess that leaves Alaina, Tyler, Sara, Kish and Dominique for the second group," Jean said, yanking Tyler back to stand next to Sara. "No buts, Tyler, you can spend time with your girlfriend at home."

"But why do Dominique and Kish get to be on the same group?" Tyler muttered.

"We are NOT going out," Dominique snarled, pulling out a lighter.

"No, Dominique, not here," Jean said, taking the lighter out of her hand. "For the duration of your stay there will be no smoking or powering up unless it is absolutely necessary. That means life or death."

"What?!" Dominique shouted. "I can't go two days without a cigarette!"

"You can and you will," Jean smiled.

Tyler and Aaron were still shouting at each other. "Oh, yeah? Well, we got the shape changer on our team," Tyler said, putting an arm around Alaina. She whimpered in the discomfort of being used.

"We have a living box of matches, we don't have to rub sticks together to start our fire," Aaron retorted. Steven opened his mouth to object but thought better of it.

"Boys, would you like to get back in the bus?" Jean walked over to stand between them. "I could arrange an early trip home due to a couple of broken legs. Accidents happen, you know."

Both boys shut up immediately, still glaring but not arguing.

………………..

"So, why are we camping for your birthday again?" Catty shouted from the front of the group. Due to her acrobatic skill, she was already far ahead of the others in the lower branches of the trees.

"My—ow!—dad used to take me camping for my birthday every year," Aaron scraped his knee on a rock as he stumbled through the thick plants. "He said I had natural camouflage on my head."

Ben pulled off his glasses and wiped them for the seventh time. "The bugs keep flying into my glasses," He said. "They just don't know any better, I guess. Like birds that fly into window panes."

"Please, let's not talk about birds right now," Tara moaned woefully. "One pooped on me earlier and this is my favorite t-shirt. I hate the woods. I hate you, Aaron!!"

"Ah, now you don't," Aaron laughed. "One day, you'll thank me for this little trip."

"I doubt it," Steven grumbled. "I already want a hamburger and it hasn't even been two hours."

"Hey, hey, I just got a great idea that'll make this trip a lot more fun," Aaron grinned wickedly. "What do you say we find out where the others are camping and play a little trick on them…"

………………………..

"Can we stop now?" Kish asked again, swatting another mosquito with his tail. He had been asking that question every ten minutes since they set out two hours ago.

"No," Tyler called back. "Keep up, Kish, Dominique."

Kish looked back at Dominique, who had fallen so far behind that she probably couldn't hear them. Kish teleported next to her and grabbed her shoulder to stop her. "Hey," he said as she tried to shrug him off. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," she growled.

"You don't look fine."

"I said I'm FINE," she said again, pushing his hand off and struggling forward. "I can't BELIEVE Mrs. Summers. No cigarettes for two days, I almost got back on the bus."

"But you didn't," Kish said, following along behind her and swatting a bug before it landed on Dominique's arm.

"I said I would go, so here I am," She said bitterly. "But you really, really owe me, Kish Darkholme."

"Does this start to scratch the surface?" He asked, leaping over a log to stand next to her. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a lighter and a pack of cigarettes. "I just thought… I mean, as long as you can smoke a little less while we're here…"

Dominique stared at him for a minute, and she slowly took the cigarettes and the lighter from his hands. "You actually thought to bring these?" She asked quietly, looking them over. "How did you know she was going to take them away from me?"

"Hey, I like you too much for you to go and kill yourself," he smiled, repeating himself from the first day they had met almost four months ago. She grabbed his shoulders and very quickly kissed him on the cheek.

"And don't think that's going to happen again, you little baby," she called to him as he stood frozen with a hand on his cheek. She laughed when she saw he was blushing furiously with wide eyes. Going back, she grabbed his hand and began to pull him along behind her. "Demure," She smiled as he stuttered.

……………………….

"Okay, that should do it," Aaron said, proud of his handiwork.

"A white sheet hanging from a tree?" Catty snorted. "You think that's gunna scare Tyler?"

"No, but it'll scare Kish half to death," Aaron grinned and stepped back, hands on his hips and nodding. "Yeah, with how jumpy he is this should make him 'port back to the bus."

"That's kind of mean," Steven mumbled. "I mean, isn't he an official member of the team now?"

"He said to me once that he wasn't sure if he was cut out for this line of work," Aaron turned around to face them. "If he goes home before the two days are up, that proves he isn't. I'm not being mean, I'm trying to help him. If he toughens up and stays the whole two days, I'll fully accept him with open arms."

"It's getting dark," Ben whispered. "We should set up camp."

………………..

Tyler looked up at the stars as he tried to fall asleep. He could hear Kish still poking at the fire on the other end of camp. When Kish finally settled into his sleeping bag, Tyler began to hear someone calling from the trees. He sat bolt upright and listened.

"Tyler…?" The voice said. "Tyler, where are you…?"

"Tara?" He called out, standing up. "Is that you?" He took a few steps toward the surrounding darkness.

"Tyler, help me… the bleeding won't stop…"

"Tara?!" He grabbed a flashlight and ran toward the voice, turning on the light as he went. "Tara—Tara, where are you? Are you okay?"

"Tyler…" She moaned. "Tyler, here I am… help me…"

He entered a clearing and saw her lying in the moonlight, blonde hair spread on the ground and holding her hands over her stomach. "Tara…" He said softly as he knelt beside her. "Tara, let me see…"

She lifted her hands and blood poured out from a deep gash. "You're too late," She whispered. "You'll always be too late. You were too late for your brother, and now you can't save me."

"How did you know about Carter?" Tyler's eyes widened.

"He drowned in the lake when you were supposed to be watching him," Tara said weakly. "You killed him, and you're killing me…"

"Stop it!" Tyler stood. "You aren't Tara, you can't be her!"

"Watch me die," Tara grinned. "Watch me die like you watched Carter die." She closed her eyes. "Aaron wouldn't have let me die."

Tyler took a step back. "No, no. I don't believe you… I don't believe…"

……………………

Steven heard the fire from the pile of wood and thought it sounded too loud. He opened his eyes and felt the warmth on his face. His sleeping bag was on fire. He jumped up and screamed, looking around. All of the trees were ablaze, and the other sleeping bags were burning. "No, no," He moaned. He took a step and realized he himself was a living flame, setting everything he got close to alight. He screamed as he saw Catty's red hair burning brightly, turning around to see Ben standing behind him. "No, get away from me…" He shouted, reaching out instinctively to push him away. Ben's shirt caught on fire and still the small boy did not move. He just stared up at him accusingly, as if he knew Steven was killing them all…

……………………………..

Sara sat up and realized she was on a couch with a blanket over her. She felt tears on her cheeks and she wiped them away. Getting up, she was startled to see her mother, rocking back and forth and knitting away in her little wooden chair. "Sara, honey," She said with a smile. "I'm knitting you a hat for winter. It gets mighty cold in Bayville, you know."

"Mommy?" Sara choked. "Mom, you're dead, you've been dead for years…"

"I know, sweetie, but I decided to make a special guest appearance," She stopped rocking and, putting down her knitting, she held out her arms. "Come here, sweetie. Come here and give your mother a big hug."

Sara leaped up from the couch and bounded towards the chair. She seemed to be losing breath and she fell to her knees. Her mother only seemed to be getting farther away from her the more she ran. Getting up, she stumbled toward her, reaching out a hand. "Mom…?" She whispered as she saw her getting smaller. "Mom! Wait!"

"Come on, baby," Her mother called. "Don't you love me? Don't you want to give me a hug?"

"I do, but I can't reach you," Sara cried. "Please, mom! Wait for me!"

"I am waiting for you, Sara," Said the faint voice as she disappeared from view. "I've been waiting for years. Don't you want to see me? Come closer, Sara… I can't see you…"

"Mom, mom, wait," Sara fell again and was sobbing uncontrollably. "Mom, come back, mom…"

……………………….

Aaron sat up in bed and yawned. He was rested, and he was ready for another wonderful day in the Williams household. Getting up, he stretched and groaned. His hair was a mess and that was okay. He had slept in his jeans and that was okay. He could do anything he wanted.

Stomping as loud as he could on the stairs, just to let everyone know he was awake, he found himself in the living room. In mid-yawn, he froze.

The beautiful furniture, the elegant curtains, the soft carpet were gone. The room was completely empty. Absolutely nothing was there. The richly decorated and normally spotless living room was coated in dust and not a single thing remained. He ran into the kitchen. This room was also empty, and also extremely dingy. The stairs were cold and hard, all of the carpets were gone. "Kaylee?" He called. "Ma? Dad?"

He peeked into his little sister's room and found it entirely bare save one said teddy bear on the middle of the floor. He picked it up and hugged it. "Kay, sweetheart? Where are you?"

He burst into his parent's room, expecting an explosion of noise and a "Happy Birthday" shout. The room was cold and heartless like every other place in the house. This was worse than the stories of getting a suitcase for your eighteenth birthday. Where WAS everybody?

Wandering back into the kitchen out of pure hunger, he walked slowly toward the only thing on the counter. It was a piece of paper, torn out of one of the journals he had gotten from his sister at Christmas.

_We're sorry, Aaron. We can't do this. You're just… different._

Aaron stared at the note and crumpled it into his fist. They had left, left to get away from him. He brought their name down. He was a disgrace to the family. He was not a part of it anymore.

"Aaron? Aaron, we are so sorry," Tara said from behind him. He didn't turn around, he didn't want her to see the tears in his eyes. "Aaron? Can you look at us?"

"Dude?" Tyler said. "Hey man, really, we're sorry."

"But we have good news!" Tara sounded bubbly and cheerful. "You are so gunna, like, freak out. Me and Tyler…"

"We're getting married, dude," Tyler said happily.

"Isn't that totally fantastic?"

Aaron clenched his fist so hard his nails dug into his skin. Tara and Tyler, Tyler and Tara, together forever, completely happy.

"Aaron?" Tara touched his shoulder. "Aren't you happy for us?"

"Get AWAY from me!" He shouted, throwing a wind wall behind him. He heard a high-pitched squeal, too high-pitched for Tara… "Kaylee!" He cried, turning around. She slid to the ground, crumpled against the wall. He ran to kneel next to her. "Kay? Kaylee? Are you… Kay, I am so sorry."

"I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday," She whimpered.

"I didn't… I didn't know… why didn't you tell me you were back there? Kaylee? Kaylee…?"

……………………………..

Alaina got up from her sleeping bag and looked around. Someone had called her. She had heard someone calling her. "Hello?" She called.

"Pretty kitty," She heard from the shadows. She could see the outline of his wings in the moonlight. She ran to him and put her arms around him.

"Mike…" she whispered. "Mike, what are you doing here? Someone might see…"

"I had to see you," He said, stroking her hair. "Alaina, I couldn't stand not being with you. Are you okay?" He held her tightly as she shook. "You're shivering."

"I just have this awful feeling," She said softly. "I think something terrible is going to happen to us. Something…" Her voice trailed away as he moved. "What's wrong? What are you… hrk!"

He held the knife in her stomach as she looked up at him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to," He said. "Alaina, I am so sorry. I don't want it to be like this."

"Mike?" She whimpered in pain. "Mike…?"

…………………..

Catty stood in the room, empty except for the single bed in the center, covered by a white sheet. She took a step closer. Someone was under that blanket. Someone dead. She stepped closer, a chill jumping up her spine. She didn't want to go closer but she couldn't help it. Curiosity. What did her father say about curiosity? Stepping closer, she felt a need to know who had died. Closer, she stepped closer. She could almost reach the top of the sheet. Curiosity killed the cat. The Catty. She took the top of the sheet and pulled it away. Curiosity killed the Catty. Her father was dead.

……………………

Ben followed the Doctor through the streets as rain beat down. He knew who he was. The Doctor could tell Ben where he came from and who he was supposed to be. The Doctor always seemed to be a step further than him. When he ran, the Doctor shrank into the distance. So he walked.

………………….

Tara watched the front door of her house. This was a day she would never forget. The door opened and Lance stormed out, followed by her six-year-old self, carrying a suitcase for her father. He threw two into the trunk and took the one Tara held out for him. Everything was silent as her mother ran outside and grabbed his shirt, shouting words Tara couldn't hear. The little girl struggled to open the passenger side door, believing that she was going with daddy. Lance got in the car, ignoring Kitty's screams and little Tara's attempts to open the door. He started the car and began to drive. Tara ran after the car, shrieking for him to wait. Kitty stood silent. The little girl stumbled and fell in the road, sobbing and calling her father, begging him to come back for her.

………………………….

Dominique walked into Kish's room and her eyes widened as she saw the suitcase open on the bed, half-full of clothes. "Kish? Are.. are you going somewhere?" She asked unsteadily as he angrily threw a notebook into the suitcase. It was labeled 'songs'.

"I'm leaving," He said quietly. "They don't want me here. I belong with my friends at the Brotherhood house."

"But, aren't I your friend?"

"No," Kish scoffed. "No way, not the way you treat me. Like I need someone ELSE pushing me around. I don't want to be used by you anymore. How many shirts have I bought you? How many hours have I wasted listening to you whine about being abandoned? Grow up, Dom. Accept the fact that no one likes you and move on, okay? We're all getting a little tired of your bullshit."

He shoved Dominique out of the way as he left. She made her way to the bed and sat down, numb as she sobbed.

……………………

"Father?" Kish said softly. "Are you going to hurt me?"

"No, Aquarius," He smiled darkly. "I have a much better way for you to see the right path. Something much more… creative." He pulled Dominique out of the shadows by her hair as he laughed. "How about I heart this girl instead? Honestly, I thought you had better taste."

"No," Kish moaned, tasting blood on his tongue. "No, not her…"

"Yes, her," Magneto threw her limp body into a tree. "How does that feel, Aquarius? How does that FEEL?" He kicked her as she struggled in the dirt, her wild hair dragging in the mud. "Do you enjoy this more?"

"No!" Kish ran forward and grabbed his arm. "No, leave her alone!"

"Would you rather I hurt you?" He said calmly as he shoved Kish away. Kish landed on his hands and knees, the pain in his side growing to the point of agony.

"Dom…" he whispered. "Don't hurt her… please, no, nonono…"

…………………..

The bus rocked gently as they started the journey home. Jean turned and smiled at the miserable looking group. "How was… oh. That bad, huh?"

The kids all started talking at once, and all about a horrible dream they had. Looking around at each other, they all started telling their dreams. Ben knew that Magneto and probably Mastermind were behind it and he said as much. Kish and Dominique, in the back of the bus and keeping in each other's sight, remained silent. When it was Dominique's turn to share, a dark glare made them turn to Kish. "What did you dream about, Kish?" Alaina asked, who had also avoided talking about hers.

Kish looked up from his notebook. "What? Nothing. I just… slept."

NEXT: Girl Power!

Sorry about all the depression, I've had a pretty rough week. Anyway, I think this one's pretty good, so can everyone who reads it post a little tiny review at least? I really want to know what this in-depth look at the characters means to you guys.


	20. Girl Power

Hello, everyone, time for the fluffy cheery happy episode everyone loves to see before someone DIES. Hope you like it, and I promise there is nothing remotely depressing about it, you will be seeing some Kish and Dominique, Mike and Alaina, and DUH DA DA DAAAA! Some TARA AND AARON.

Episode 6: Girl Power

"Come ON, Tara!" Aaron rapped on her door for the fourth time loudly. "Let's go, I'm not going to wait all day!"

"Of course not," Tara opened her door and she stood before him in full uniform, the same design as her mother's with the added accessory of blue lightning earrings. "Why would you be made to wait all day for little old me? I am not worth all of that kind of trouble." She looked at his uniform and stopped walking. "Is that a new suit?"

"Yeah, you like it?" He turned around. "Cool, right? Matches my hair, all dark green."

"Wow, Aaron, how girly of you to say such a thing," Tara laughed at his shocked face. "Wow. 'It matches my hair', HONESTLY, that is like totally unbelievable and it is so getting spread around."

"You will not!" Aaron shouted. "You witch!"

"I will so," Tara giggled. "'less you catch me!" She ran off, laughing and giggling as he followed. Aaron grinned to himself as he chased her. If this wasn't flirting, he didn't know what was.

The chase stopped abruptly as Tara barreled face first into Kish, sending the amazingly skinny mutant teen flying backward onto his butt with a groan. "I'm sorry," She cried, covering her mouth. Aaron caught up with her and held out a hand. As Kish reached up, he pulled it away, sending Kish back to the floor with a dull thud.

"Sych!" He laughed.

"Aaron!!" Tara whirled around and pushed him. "You… you… JERK!"

"What, it was just a joke," Aaron rubbed the back of his head as Tara held out her hand to help Kish up. Kish looked at the ground and didn't take her hand.

"Kish?" She said softly. "Let me help you."

Kish looked up suddenly and scrambled backwards. "I-I'm fine," He said, pulling himself up. He smiled his bright smile and tilted his head sideways. "I was just looking for you two anyways. Session's over, you two need to do make-up sessions."

"Over?" Aaron scoffed. "It just started a minute ago."

"Yeah, but Dominique blew away everything Logan threw at us," Kish laughed. "It was awesome! Well, bye." He ran down the hall past them, humming something.

"He seems happy," Tara said, smiling. Then she glared at Aaron. "No thanks to you! That was totally uncalled for!!"

"I was just messing around," Aaron shrugged. "I can't even mess around anymore?"

"Kish has been through Hell at the hands of God knows who would do that to a kid and you go and play a dirty trick like that," Tara growled and stormed back into her room. "You are really something, Aaron Williams."

………………………….

"Hey, chickadee," Catty stopped in front of Alaina's door and knocked. "Let me in, I have to talk to you."

Alaina opened the door and Catty was surprised to see Tara nestled in her bed eating a chocolate bar. "Hey, Cat," Alaina said. "Tara and I were talking about Aaron. Wanna join in?"

"No, I have to talk about something a little more… serious," Catty said as she sat down at Alaina's desk. The fourteen-year-old girl flopped into her beanbag chair and sighed. "About the dreams."

"Um…" Alaina frowned. She had escaped talking about hers just barely, she didn't think she could do it again. "What about them?"

"I've been having more of them," Catty said, looking out the window. "But they aren't about my dad anymore. They're about my mom. She keeps dieing in childbirth."

"Wow," Tara sat up and held out the last of her chocolate to the redhead. She shook her head and looked at the floor. "Do you think it even means anything? I mean, they're only dreams, right?"

"I don't know, anyway Steven's being a real ass about it," She growled, clenching her teeth a little. "He says I'm imagining things and I should forget about it. He doesn't even care about what I think about it."

"Hey, does the happy couple have a problem?" Alaina got up and put a hand on her shoulder. "It won't last, I know you two. It'll be fine."

"Mom gives birth soon, maybe even this month," Catty sighed. "I'm not as worried about how I'm going to take it if something happens as I am about dad." She looked up at Alaina. "He is so attached to her, he might not make it."

"He'll be fine, he's tough," Tara smiled, trying to lighten up the room.

"I sure hope so," Catty smiled back weakly. "So, what about Aaron? What did he do THIS time?"

"Oh, he was totally mean to Kish again," Tara looked pissed as she remembered the incident. "Hasn't he, like, picked on that poor guy enough?"

"Yeah, and I was telling her to hit him," Alaina said cheerfully, happy about the change in conversation.

"Can we just go to the mall or something?" Catty said, getting up. "I'm in the mood for a burger."  
"Ooo, ooo," Tara jumped up. "Let's invite Sara and Dominique, we so totally need a girl's day."

"Yeah, Sara can drive," Alaina jumped up and down and squealed. "Girl's day, girl's day!"

…………………….

Dominique was reading a book in the kitchen when Kish came in for his seventh snack of the hour. He dug through the fridge and sat down with an old leftover sandwich. "Hi," he said softly as Dominique looked up.

"Bonjour, patisserie," she said, smiling.

"Um, what?" Kish looked at her with a bit of confusion. "What did you just call me?"

She laughed. "I called you a Quiche, a pastry, stupid."

"Oh, great, they're making the connection," Kish rolled his eyes. "You know, it took Mike two minutes to start calling me that."

"Catty asked Steven to the Sadie Hawkins dance," Dominique looked back at her book as she said this, taking care to hide her face behind her hair.

"Yeah, I heard. She bought tickets the day they started selling them." Kish shook his head. "Those two really astound me sometimes."

"Yes, and Tara is planning to ask Tyler," she continued.

"Tyler isn't going," Kish took a bite out of his sandwich. "He told me yesterday that if she asks him he isn't going."

"Why not, do you think?"

"I don't know," Kish stopped eating and looked at her. "What's with you? Why the sudden gossiping?"

She looked at her book and was turning red. "I don't know," She said, trying to sound angry with him. "L'idiot, ce n'est pas vos affaires en tout cas."

"Again, I have no idea what you said," Kish took another bite. "And at this point, I can deal with that."

"Irez-vous à la danse avec moi?" She blurted out, blushing furiously and hiding behind a curtain of hair. She was too proud to really ask him and she was sure he wouldn't understand.

"Yes," Kish responded. She stared at him in astonishment. "I looked up that sentence because I knew you wouldn't ask me in English and I have been waiting, waiting, waiting for you to ask it."

At that moment, the other four girls came in and dragged Dominique to her feet. "Come on," Alaina giggled. "Girl's day!"

"Bon au revoir," She whispered as she was lead out of the kitchen.

"Auf Wiedersehen," He whispered back, smiling to himself and more than a little happy.

…………………..

"Let's stop at my place," Tara said, leaning forward and pointing. "I need my good outfit. Go that way."

Dominique pushed Tara back into her seat. "Would you kindly not put your Âne de fille blond maigrichon in my face?" She growled.

"Hey, be nice back there," Catty turned to look at the French girl. "Whatever you said, it didn't sound very nice, so stop it."

"This is your house?" Alaina gasped. "It's so… girly and pretty. Look at all the flowers!"

"Yeah, uncle Kurt was enslaved and planted them for her," Tara said, getting out.

The girls went inside to discover Kitty Pryde wasn't home. Instantly they started raiding the fridge as Tara ran to change. "I'll be right back, don't break anything," She called behind her.

"Hey, check this out," Sara said softly as she opened a drawer. The girls gathered around to look at the photo she held up. It was a picture of five teenage girls with their arms around each other and their legs crossed together, linked, one. They were dressed I gothic get-up and their hair was slicked back. On the bottom, the word 'Sirins' was scrawled in purple ink.

"Oh my God, that's Mrs. Summers!" Squealed Alaina.

"And aunt Kitty, and aunt Rogue," Catty smiled.

"Is that Amara and Tabitha?" Tara said, walking in and squinting at the photo. "They come over all the… time," She finished, looking from the picture to the girls. "What?"

"This is sooo awesome," Alaina said. "Do you know what this MEANS?"

"No, please explain," Dominique looked at Catty.

"They were a team," Catty said quietly. "A team of female crimefighters. They didn't need anyone… they had each other."

"Like us," Sara smiled at the others.

"Yeah…" Tara nodded.

The girls sat down on the couch with the picture, pointing out the clothes and the hair, laughing and planning different matching outfits for themselves. Eventually, they stopped laughing and looked at each other.

"Someone's gotta promise that we'll always look out for each other," Alaina said softly. "Just us, friends forever, okay?" Dominique scoffed and tried to hide her smile.

"Yeah, you're right," Catty nodded. "We have to swear. On the Sirins?"

"On us," Sara said. "Even if we can't be what they were, we're the new Sirins now."

"Totally," Tara laughed. "To us!"

…………………….

"Hi, Mike," Alaina said quietly into her cell phone. "I just wanted to ask… I mean, I know this is stupid, but… I know we can't go to the dance together, but I thought, maybe I can skip the dance and we could go somewhere. Like, to Lookout Point or something? Or the Coffee Pot?" She paused. "Okay… anyway, call me back. Pick up the phone next time okay? I hate talking to answering machines."

Mike listened to the message again. Everything but that he had thought about. They would all be at the dance, except for her, and that hurt him. He didn't want her anywhere near home when they raided and destroyed the device. The best plan he could come up with was to tell her to meet him at the Coffee Pot and stand her up. Then at least she wouldn't get hurt.

He loved her so much.

……………………

"Aaron? What do you want?" Tara looked up from her desk as he stood in the doorway. "Here to brag about how you can push over the guy who weighs all of a hundred and ten pounds?"

"No, I'm here to say I'm sorry that Tyler can't go to the dance," Aaron said.

"If you're waiting for me to ask YOU, it isn't gunna happen," Tara snapped.

"Well, fine, I was just wondering if you wanted to get some ice cream with me, but if it's gunna be like THAT…"

"_That_, I think, can happen," She said, smiling and standing up. "And you are so totally paying."

That was very okay with Aaron.

They chased each other to the front door, but when they opened it a little girl was standing there with two suitcases. "Hi," She said softly in what sounded like a British accent. She was nine, with wavy dirty blond hair and big brown eyes. "I'm here to stay with my big sister. Can I talk to Dominique?"

NEXT: Death Note

What did you guys think? I decided against crime-fighting scenes due to complications in continuity, but I fit as much Sirin fluffiness as I could. Plus some lovey dovyness! Review please!


	21. Interlude

Interlude

"My name's Eevee Taylor," the girl said, sitting across from the Professor in his study. Dominique had been called in, and she dragged Kish along for good measure; SOMEone had to crack a joke about this, and Kish had a joke for everything. "I lived with my father in England. My mother left us when I was seven. When I got my mutant powers, father said it would be best if I came here." She frowned. "When he called mother's ex-husband, we found out about my older sister and I decided that I might like it here, what with family and all."

"So she left you, too," Dominique said, feeling the blood rise in her face as she became angry with her mother all over again.

"Seems to be a trend, yeah," Eevee smiled weakly and played with her charm bracelet. "Hurt dad more than it did me, that's for sure. She didn't like me very much. She didn't mean to have another kid, I guess. Anyway, dad thought I should come here to gain a bit of control. I'll be seeing him on holidays, though."

Dominique was almost jealous of this little girl. Her mother had left her, but she, unlike herself had a father who loved her. Why did it seem like other people got everything and she got nothing? She clenched her fist and gritted her teeth, trying to remain completely emotionless as Xavier and Eevee talked about sleeping arrangements.

She was startled as Kish touched her hand. Looking at him, she saw him staring at her questioningly. What's wrong? He mouthed. She looked away quickly, realizing that no matter how emotionless she seemed to Eevee and Xavier, Kish somehow always knew.

"I have to go to bed," She said abruptly, standing and heading for the door.

"But, I wanted to…" Eevee was saying as she closed the door.

…………………………..

Dominique sat on her bed, thinking things over and trying to hold her anger down. She wasn't seeing anything anymore, she couldn't. She was so infuriated with her mother, with her father, with Eevee, and especially with Kish. She couldn't figure out why she was so upset with Kish, truth be told he hadn't really done anything, but he hadn't come to her room to talk with her in the past two hours it had been since she had left Xavier's office. She had been positive that he would come. But he hadn't.

With almost perfect timing, there was a knock on the door. She jumped slightly, them shouted irritably, "Who is it?"

"It's Pastry," Kish said softly.

She tried not to seem too happy as she opened the door. "What do YOU want, stupide?" She said.

"I wanted, I mean, I thought you might…" He looked away. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she lied.

"Want some company?"

"No."

Kish looked at the ground. "I guess… I'm going to bed. See you in the morning, okay?"

She watched him take a few steps down the hall. Blinking, she realized she had tears in her eyes and wiped them away. "Kish… Kish, wait!"

Kish turned and looked a bit more spirited.

"Could you… stay with me? Just a little while. You don't have to stay, but… maybe you could…. I don't know, listen to me rant for a little bit?" she sounded stupid and she knew it. "Please?"

He smiled his weird half smile and came back to the door. "Sure," He said. "I said I would always listen. What are friends for?"

And for what felt like the first time in her life, she hugged him, and she actually felt safe. Her headache had melted away, like Kish always made it do.

Sorry this is so short, but it's just a brief intro to Eevee before Death Note. This counts as something you should review… don't skip telling me what you think because you know I will hunt you down and kill you.


	22. Death Note

BEWARE OF DEPRESSION. This is NOT a happy episode, actually it might be the most awfully sad thing I have ever written.

Episode 7: Death Note

"Just friends, right?"

"What?" Kish asked, looking at Dominique in the passenger seat. She was staring straight ahead and frowning. Kish touched her shoulder. "You okay?"

"We're here as just friends." She looked at him and gave him the dead stare. "This doesn't mean anything."

"Oh, oh yeah, yeah, right," Kish nodded. "Of course."

She sighed in relief as Kish got out of the car. She had again fallen back on her familiar and comforting crutch; the words 'just friends'. This was the second dance they had been to, and both times she had insisted on going as such.

Kish opened her door. "Come on out of there," He said, smiling and holding out a hand. She took it and he helped her out. "You cold?"

"No, I'm fine," Dominique walked ahead of him in a defiant 'we are NOT dating' fashion. "Come on, stupide. I want to get this over with."

"You asked ME here, remember?" Kish moaned to himself, straightening his jacket and running to catch up with her. But he could put up with her. He could put up with her forever. "Hey," he said, touching her back and making her turn around.

"Que?" she asked, annoyed at his sudden need to talk to her in front of the school. He picked the oddest times.

"You look beautiful," He said softly. "Don't be so tense, you're ruining this for all the hopeless guys out there who want to be here with you."

She looked down, blushing and was becoming very annoyed with herself. "Don't try to flatter me…" she said.

"I'm not, I'm just telling the truth." He grinned, putting her at ease. Whenever he grinned, she relaxed and stopped trying to seem distant. It was just a talent.

……………………

"I don't need help getting out of the car, Steven," Catty said, ignoring his hand. "I'm fine."

"Listen, can we NOT fight right now?" Steven stepped back and let her get up on her own. "I was planning on having fun tonight."

"Yeah, well, me too," Catty said coldly.

"I REALLY need to stop talking to Aaron."

"Wow, you just now figured that out?" Catty whirled around to face him. "I cannot believe you would tell him about my dreams. I can't believe you didn't expect him not to tell Kurt. Now, my parents are fighting because of you!"

"Your parents are not fighting because of me, they are fighting because your mom lied and he found out. How the Hell is that MY fault?!" Steven really, really didn't want to fight with her tonight. "You can't just blame me whenever you have a problem with your dad, Cat!"

"I don't have a problem with my dad, Steven!" She shouted back. "My… my dreams…" she looked at the ground, desperately trying to hold back the tears. "They… they were right. My mom's sick. She…"

"Catty?" Steven put his hands on her shoulders. "Catty…"

She threw himself into his arms and began to sob. "Steven, what am I going to do if she dies?" she said between deep breaths. "I can't take care of daddy, he'll fall to pieces and then what?"

"Hey, you want to go home?" He said softly, running his hands through her hair and trying to calm her down. "I could take you home."

"No, I don't want to be home right now," she sniffed and wiped her eyes, standing straight again. Her image inducer didn't mask her red eyes. "Could you, um, take me to Lookout Point? I just… I want to be with you. But not here."

"Okay," He said, opening the passenger side door. "Get on in there, Kitty Cat."

"She smiled a bit and giggled. This time, she let him help her.

………………

"Someone sitting here?" Someone asked as Tara sat by herself in the auditorium. It just seemed like everyone had a date but her. She looked up, startled.

"Aaron!" she gasped, standing up. "I thought… I mean, I didn't know you were…"

"I'm here," he said, sticking his hands in his jacket pocket. "Because Tyler wanted the room to himself and he asked me to come over here and keep you company. He says he's sorry."

"Yeah, well, you'll have to do," she said, pretending to be disappointed. "Dance with me!" she grabbed his hands out of his pockets and pulled him to the dance floor. "Please, my legs have been aching all night for one!"

"Hey, he told me to keep you company, not steal you away," He said jokingly, laughing nervously.

"Who said anything about stealing me?" she smiled and put her arms around his neck with some difficulty due to his height. "Maybe I'm doing the stealing here."

"Hardee har har har," he said sarcastically. "You? Stealing me? From whom, may I ask, do you presume yourself to be stealing me from?"

"That is a question for a later date," she said. "Can't we just have fun now? I just want to have fun, let's have fun, okay?"

"Okay," he said. "That, I can do."

Sara, on the other side of the room, suddenly was greeted by a clearing throat. She looked up and almost jumped back at the closeness of this girl. She sat next to Sara and smiled at her. "Stag too?" she asked.

"Yeah," she said softly. "I didn't know who to ask, so I just came alone. You?"

"Didn't want to ask anyone," said the girl. She was very pretty, with dark curly hair and a soft face. "I'm Julie. Sara, right?"

"Yeah."

"Wanna dance?" Julie tilted her head, causing her hair to tumble over her shoulder.

"What?" Sara laughed. Then she stopped. "What… are you serious?"

"Yeah…?" Julie looked confused. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Okay," Sara got up as Julie led her to the dance floor. Maybe Julie was a little odd, and maybe she was a little straightforward, but this was so much better than being alone.

……………………

Tyler worked at his device as though his life depended on it. This was his only current project, and he was almost done. He had some help from Ben earlier and he had made major progress, and he was sure he was going to be finished by morning if he kept at it.

He thought this was why he didn't go to the dance, but he wasn't so sure anymore. Thinking about Tara, he wondered what she and his best friend were doing right now. He had sent Aaron along to the dance so that she would have some company, but not because he didn't think he wouldn't make a move. Aaron was desperately in love with the girl, and Tyler couldn't really blame him. He had thought long and hard about the whole mess, and he had finally come to the conclusion that if Tara wasn't happy, neither was he. No matter how much he loved her, Tara was in love with Aaron, and that wasn't going to change.

Placing a bolt in position and screwing it on, he sighed. He had never had much luck in love, even at his old school. He never stayed with any girl longer than a week or so. He had been with Tara for months, but only because Tara was trying to make Aaron jealous. He found himself to be a sucker, and for some reason, that was okay. As long as Tara was happy.

He didn't notice the alarm light going off for a good five minutes. He glanced up at the blinking red light and turned off his I-pod. The alarms were sounding off loudly. He and Ben were alone in the house. What could possibly set them off?

…………………

Kish smiled as Dominique danced her own way, not following his or anyone else's lead. She just did what she felt like doing, a random chaos that made her that much more beautiful. He was amazingly happy at that moment. He had never been happier.

Suddenly, his head was wracked with pain as his hands shot to the back of his head and he dropped to his knees, shouting in complete utter agony. Dominique didn't notice at first, the music had drowned him out for the most part, but when she opened her eyes he was on his knees holding his head, screaming in pain. Kneeling beside him, she tried to look into his eyes. "Kish!" She cried. "Kish?! Sont vous d'accord?!"

"Wha… what?" Kish moaned, gritting his teeth. "D-dom, the house, it's… what are you saying, I can't hear you… urgh!"

"What about the house?" she said, grabbing his shoulders.

"M…Mike," Kish said softly. "F… father…"

Dominique helped him to his feet as he continued to hold his head. She dragged him through the crowd and found Aaron and Tara. "We have to go," She shouted over the music.

"Fine, go," Aaron said back.

"No, not us—WE have to go, all of us. Tara, find Sara." She watched as Tara ran off, slightly pale after a look at Kish's condition.

…………………..

Catty closed her eyes as she leaned against Steven. The car was warm and safe, and nothing could possibly happen now.

Her eyes shot open. She had heard something, someone talking to her, but as she looked up at Steven, he looked like he was falling asleep. "Steven? Steven, did you hear something?" She asked.

"What?" He said. That answered THAT question, she thought.

She heard it again, this time a bit clearer. _Catty? Catty, can you hear me?_ It was Ben's voice. He was speaking with her through telepathy, something he rarely ever did if he could help it. He barely had any control over his mental powers and a brief use of it normally wiped him out for hours.

_Yes, what's wrong?_ She thought back, worried.

_The alarms are going off and it's just me and Tyler here. Dominique called the house and told us Kish is having another episode._

_I'll get home right away, _she answered. "Steven, we have to go home."

"What? How did you…"

"Just drive!" She shouted.

………………

Alaina sat with her head on the table, waiting for Mike to show up. He had called her the day before and told her to meet him at the Coffee Pot at eight. Well, here was eight thirty and still no Mike. She sighed. Stood up again. There was probably a good reason, she thought. Probably.

She sat up when the waiter took her cup. "You want a refill, darlin'?" The woman said. Alaina nodded miserably. "Boy trouble?"

"He's half an hour late," She said softly. "He usually calls."

"Eh, if he usually calls, he's probably got a good reason for not bein' here, sweetie," She said. "How's this, if he ain't here in another hour, I'll let you stay a little after closing."

"That's okay," Alaina said. "I'll just have this last cup. Then I'll leave, I guess."

Her cell phone rang as the waitress left and she pounced on it, flipping ot open eagerly. "Hello?" She said excitedly

"Lainie? It's Sara," Alaina sighed in disappointment. "You'd better get home, sweetheart, there might be a little trouble at the institute. Kish is having another episode with his shade-sense."

"What?" Alaina said, slowly understanding. Mike had sent her here on purpose. "Okay, I… I'll be right there."

"Hurry, honey," Sara said as Alaina hung up. She stared through her tears at the cell phone screen, a picture of Mike staring back at her. There were two possible explanations. Mike had gotten rid of everyone so it would be easier to attack, or he was trying to protect her again. Somehow, she was afraid of both possibilities.

………………..

"Kish, we're almost to the infirmary, just hang on, okay?" Dominique was saying to him with a choked voice. Aaron had one arm and she had the other, limping through the hallway towards the infirmary door. Tyler was behind them, continuously looking over his shoulder in worry. Tara and Ben had been left in the foyer to wait for the others to come home, and Sara was in the security center looking for the breach.

"He's here, he's here," Kish kept saying.

"Who's here, what's he talking about?" Aaron asked irritably. He wasn't too happy with his date being cut short.

"His father," Dominique said knowingly. "Kish is terrified of Magneto. I'm beginning to think Magneto was the one who broke him in the first place."

"That is correct, little girl," Said a deep voice ahead of them. Kish fell dead silent and Dominique could feel him go cold. "Now, I want the mutant tracking device, and I want it now."

"What mutant tracking…" Aaron began. Then he turned his head to look at Tyler. "…device?"

"Give it to me and no one will be harmed," Magneto said, looming over them in the dark hallway. Aaron had never faced Magneto, never seen him, and for the first time, he was actually frightened of him.

"I won't give it to you," Tyler shouted.

"Homme de rat puant," Dominique spat at him.

"Feisty little ones, aren't you," Magneto advanced and put a hand on Dominique's face. She was too terrified to move, but she could feel anger boiling up inside of Kish.

"Don't… touch her," Kish growled under his breath. Shaking himself and standing upright, he winced from his headache but tried to be as tall as possible. "Don't you ever… touch her."

"Ah, I see," Magneto seemed amused. "Aquarius, I thought you had better taste than this worm of a French girl."

"Don't you dare!" He screamed. "Don't you dare talk about her that way! You are less than the dirt she walks on!"

"Kish…" Tyler said. "I'll… if this will keep everyone safe…"

"Don't Tyler, If he gets it, he's won," Aaron said firmly. Tara and Ben appeared on the second floor landing, followed closely by Catty and Steven.

"The inventor knows what he is dealing with," Magneto laughed.

………………….

Alaina landed on the lawn, transforming form hawk to girl in a matter of seconds, and she ran towards the door, headlong into Mike.

"Mike…!" She gasped. "What are you doing here?" She asked, suddenly angry.

"Alaina, don't go in there, it isn't safe," Mike said, taking her hands in his and trying to pull her closer. She yanked away.

"Yeah, right!" She spat. "This was all a trick, wasn't it? Making me fall in love with you so you could use me as a spy! I thought I could trust you! I thought you loved me!!"

"I do, Alaina, please," Mike blocked the door again. "God, I love you more than life itself. I don't want you to be hurt, I don't want you to go against Magneto and come out of this in pieces. Please, believe me."

She wanted to. "But my friends are in there," She shouted desperately. "My family's in there!"

"You don't need them," Mike managed to pull her into a tight hug. "We can run away, we could just go, keep flying until we can't see Bayville anymore. We don't need any of this. But I need you."

"There are more important things here than you and me," She whispered, putting a hand on his face. She slowly began to absorb his DNA, making him sleepy. He lost his grip and fell. Alaina was dizzy, she had never absorbed a human before, as she stepped over Mike and ran into the house.

…………………

The fight inside to keep the device from Magneto raged. Magnus, Ghost Moon, and Mirror had appeared out of nowhere and they attacked ruthlessly and without mercy. Against the Brotherhood and Magneto together, the budding team of teenage mutants didn't stand a chance.

Ben frantically tried again and again to call the Professor, on a mission with the other adults, but he had no idea where to start looking and he was becoming tired from the hard work. He was surrounded by his teammates, because in the eleven-year-old's position he was vulnerable to attack. Alaina had leaped into the fray as a huge grizzly, knocking Mirror to the ground like a bowling pin, but was soon stopped by Ghost Moon and was unconscious before she could do real damage.

Catty saw that her team was failing. She almost began to consider just giving up the device, but her father… her father would never give up. Uncle Scott would NEVER give up. She looked around at her struggling group and saw they had no choice but to fight until one side lost.

Magneto made his way through the battle until he found himself in front of Tyler. The seventeen-year-old boy stood protectively in front of his machine and would not back down. Magneto laughed at his courage. "Move aside, boy," he said in his frightening, echoing voice, trying to scare him away.

"No," Tyler shouted. A glance at Tara was all he needed to boost his courage.

"Give it up, child. You cannot keep it from me." Magneto prepared to raise his hand to pull the machine toward him, but he was caught by surprise as Tyler, raising his own hand, shot a proton blast directly into the man's chest. It knocked Magneto to the ground with a thud.

Tyler was pleased with himself until Magneto pulled himself up. His eyes glowed a violent yellow in his helmet as he floated forward. "That… was… a mistake," Magneto shouted above the noise.

It was over in seconds. A metal rod tore itself from the machine and threw itself right through Tyler's chest.

"No!" Shrieked Tara as the boy fell hard to the ground. Magneto did not move as Tara stopped fighting Magnus and ran to his side, kneeling and holding his head in her arms.

Everything seemed to stop dead. Magneto, staring down as Tara sobbed apologies to Tyler, raised his hand to knock them aside, and was suddenly confronted by Kish, standing between him and the machine.

"Move aside, Aquarius," Magneto whispered in a strange, closed voice. "I do not want to hurt you if I don't have to."

"These are my friends," Kish said. "No… these people are my family. "I won't let you hurt them."

"Kish, stop it, let him take it," Catty cried.

"Listen to the girl," Magneto still sounded strange. "Please."

Kish stood defiant and unwavering.

Dominique turned to see Eevee, rubbing her eyes and dressed in a white nightgown. "What's going on?" She asked. Dominique quickly grabbed her and pulled her into a protective hug, moving away from Magneto.

"Aquarius," Magneto sighed. "You leave me no choice." And he struck, sending Kish careening to the floor. He waited and watched as his son pulled himself up again and stood, still defiant, still strong. Magneto knocked him over again. Kish, again, stood back up.

This continued until Kish tried his hardest to get up, but fell back to the floor, coughing blood onto the carpet. Magneto stepped forward to finish him.

"STOP IT!"

Magneto turned at the sound of the shriek. Dominique was on her knees, holding her sobbing sister. "Look at what you're doing," the French mutant whispered. "You just killed a child, now you are going to kill your own son. What kind of God does these things?"

Magneto looked down at Tara's sobbing body, holding onto Tyler who was struggling to breathe. He looked at Kish, still struggling to stand.

"What kind of monster would do these things?" Magneto said softly.

"If you're better than humans, you sure don't know how to act like it," Alaina shouted.

Magneto turned away from Kish. "Let's go, Brotherhood."

"But…!" Mirror began. "Sir, boss, dude, the machine, it's still…"

"Let's GO, Brotherhood," Magneto said firmly, moving towards the stairs. "Isaac, find Blackangel and tell him we are retreating."

The teenagers watched as they went, listening to Tara's pitiful sobs and Kish's coughs.

"Tyler, stay with me, please," Tara moaned, holding him closer.

"Tara…" Tyler looked up at her face and was suddenly surprised at how beautiful she was. "Tara, stop crying, don't cry. I'm not going anywhere."

"Yes you are, you twit, you're dying," Tara shouted at him.

"Yeah, duh," Tyler said quietly. "But I'll be here…" he touched her forehead. "And here…" he touched her chest. "I'll always be right there."

"Tyler…?" She whispered. "Tyler, you can't die. You can't just leave me like that, that has got to be the worst possible way to dump someone ever."

"Hey, who said anything about dumping you?" Tyler tried to laugh but coughed instead. "Tara, I… I love…"

"Tyler?" Tara whispered. "Ty… Tyler?!"

Catty looked at her demoralized team. Alaina, on her knees and trying her hardest not to burst into tears. Steven, struggling to stay conscious. Aaron, fighting back dry sobs as he held Steven up. Ben, exhausted and pale, faced with death at eleven years old. Dominique, rushing to Kish's side as he struggled to get to his feet. Sara, who had only gotten there in time to watch Magneto leave in shame. She turned to look at Eevee, who had been joined by Johnny. This was the side of being a hero they had seen at such a young age. They stood so pale and small in their pajamas. They were too young.

"Tyler…" Tara sobbed softly. "He… he's g-gone."

NEXT: Recovery

This was one of the hardest episodes for me to write. Please, please, please review, and tell me if you cried. I know I did and am. It's really hard to kill a character you created without crying. Please, people, I need some sort of reassurance. Thank you for still reading.


	23. I Will Follow You

Hello everyone, this is the last installment of Mission X. Thank you everyone who has been with me since Chapter One, and just to reassure you THIS IS NOT THE END. One, NeXt Gen will be out soon, and two, any one of you can keep this story going with fanfics of your own. Your favorite characters will live on in your hearts (and in the RPG).

Episode 8: I Will Follow You

**AARON**

It's incredibly windy today, I thought, straightening my jacket. Tyler told me once that back home, his favorite kind of day was the windy kind in fall, when the multi-colored leaves would blow around his feet as he walked to school. I smiled as I thought he was happy that he was being buried on a day just like that.

I glanced over at Catty, struggling not to cry at this double funeral. Her mom had died a week ago and she still hadn't shed a single tear, acting like the tough leader she was, standing there holding her baby brother Karl. I admired her, the way she could just BE without appearing weak at all. I personally had cried seven times since Tyler died, once all over Steven's new shirt. Dude, I seriously needed a pacifier or something that day.

You say I'm not the crying type. No way, I am a CRY BABY when it comes to death. When my grandma Elsie died I sobbed like a two year old. Tyler was my best friend. Seven times still didn't seem like enough.

Sticking my hands in the jeans of my pockets, I let the wind whip my hair around and even made it a bit windier. Tyler deserved all the wind I could give him. I glanced at Tara, who hadn't stopped crying since the day he died, not even once. I watched her every day and I swear she must have used three boxes of tissues at least. She was still crying now, letting Sara rub her back as silent tears streamed down her face. Her hair, which she hadn't put up, was hanging loose and stringy around her face. This wasn't one of her pretty days, but still for some reason my chest hurt just looking at her.

I was the one who had to make a speech about Tyler. Me, the one who without fail waits for the last minute to write up homework assignments. But I was a writer, everyone knew that. But I hadn't written anything for today. I had it all in my head.

"Okay, um, everybody," I said, getting everyone's attention. "Um… Tyler. Tyler McBreo. He was… strange, to say the least. When it was just the original five in the house we thought we had it made. We were like glue. Then Tyler showed up, and I did not like this. He was going to muck up our team, make us weaker, because a team is only as strong as the weakest link. And I am not saying he was a weak link. He would have been the weak link in our family that we original five were at that time. And you know what he did? He didn't run away. He stayed. He developed a friendship with Johnny and they saved our butts on his first night. We would have been blown to smithereens if he didn't have faith. But he did, and he cut that striped wire, and he saved us."

I glanced at Tara. She was trying not to look at me.

"So I gave him a shot. I tried to like him. He was made my roommate, and I didn't like that either. I love privacy, anyone here can attest to that. So, I hated him. And still, he didn't give up. He formed bonds with Ben, with Steven… with Tara that I didn't like. But soon, everyone was going to him for help with relationships, with homework, with stress. He was there for us when we couldn't take care of ourselves. He became our family's strongest link through pure hard work and determination. And he earned our trust. He earned MY trust."

I blinked away a tear. Oh please, God, not now.

"He… he taught us, all of us, including me, that new was not bad. Tyler fought his way into the group and won. He beat a path for Alaina, for Sara, for Dominique… for Kish. He showed them the way to hope here at Xavier's, and they followed him. We all did. Tyler was a good guy, that dude that everyone could talk to about just about anything. And you knew you could trust him. I trusted him. He died protecting Xavier's dream. He died too young, I say, but the good die young. Tyler was good. I… really don't know what the hell we are going to do without him."

I stepped away from the center of attention, holding in tears and trying my best not to sniff. God, don't let Tara see me like this. Don't let Catty see me like this.

But I saw Catty. She was crying. I smiled a little. Even the fearless leader needed to let go sometimes.

**Steven**

Catty had disappeared after Aaron's speech. It seemed like every time I wanted to talk to her, she vanished, and it was really getting on my nerves. I needed her right now. She should start up a disappearing act. Then she could be completely annoying and make money off of it.

I shook my head. WHERE were all these mean thoughts COMING from? For the past few days, I had just exploded at everybody for no reason, thinking horrible things about them and sometimes even voicing my opinion. I frowned as I made my way up the stairs. I was just crabby.

I got to her door and hesitated before I knocked. What if I said something mean to her and she slammed the door in my face? With the utmost intention to be completely nice and civil, I knocked a few times and waited. At first I didn't get an answer. Sighing, I started to turn around, but the door opened. There she was, her cute ball-of-fuzz self, her hair a frizzy red mess and her eyes puffy and filled with tears. "Hi," I said. "I just wanted to see if you were okay."

"I'm fine," she said in a choked voice. "Maybe you should go check on my dad. HE'S the one who needs to be watched." She started closing the door, but I stuck my foot in the way.

"Hey," I said. "Can't I just stay and be quiet? What are you doing?"

"Moping. Trying to sleep." She answered.

"Let me come mope with you." I took her hand. "Please? I won't talk, I swear. I miss my girlfriend. Where'd Catty Wagner go?"

She giggled a little and pulled me into the room. "She's right here. I just needed some alone time, but I guess I could use some boyfriend time too."

"You realize we haven't had any time alone since Tyler died," I said suddenly before I could close my stupid mouth. She was so going to kick me out now. Why couldn't I just shut up?

To my surprise, she wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me. "I know," she whispered. "That's gotta change."

I let her kiss me and then I kissed her back as she pulled me onto the bed. We just sat there, making out for a good fifteen minutes before I finally pulled away from her. "Catty," I said. "What's with you?"

"Nothing," She said. "Can we cuddle like we used to?"

I nodded.

We lay silent for another good fifteen minutes, holding each other. She even started crying and I just held her, trying to calm her down. She started kissing me again and I didn't stop her. I wanted to leave but I couldn't go anywhere. I would be lying if I said I wasn't enjoying this.

Without thinking, I slid my hands under the back of her shirt and touched the clasp of her bra. She gasped and pulled away, startled. "Steven…" She said as I pulled my hands away, embarrassed.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I was just…"

She grabbed my wrists and pulled them back, kissing me again. "I'm ready," she whispered into my ear.

**Sara**

I honestly didn't know what to do with myself. I sat at the kitchen table, looking around at the empty room, and felt completely alone. No one had tried to talk to me in three days. Everyone was so wrapped up in whatever they were feeling, and I completely understood, but to totally ignore me was different. I hadn't been there when Tyler was killed. I was the only one on the team that hadn't watched it happen.

Alaina walked in and grabbed the cell phone she had left on the table.

"Where are you going?" I asked, looking over her nice outfit and her purse. Alaina had been mostly silent these past couple of weeks and it had been worrying me. She was usually so bright and chatty.

"Out," she replied simply.

"Want some company?"

"No." Alaina went to the door, stopped, then very suddenly ran to me and threw herself into a tight hug. She was sobbing uncontrollably and I tried my best to hold her still.

"Baby, what's the matter?" I asked, sensing that she wasn't crying about the recently deceased.

"I have to tell you something, Kish and Dom and Steven know but you gotta promise not to tell," she said through her sobs.

"Okay, okay, I promise," I said as she sat down in my lap and put her arms around me. "Sweetie, what's wrong, tell me what's bothering you."

"Okay, here goes," she sniffed. "I'm in love with a guy on the brotherhood."

"What?" I said. "Which one? Please don't say Magnus, I will have to kill him."

"No!" Alaina was shocked out of her sobs and stared at me incredulously. "EW! No, I don't like Magnus. Yuck. He's a total jerk. No, I'm in love with Blackangel."

"Mike Hart?" I blinked, surprised that I hadn't made that connection. "Wow, really?"

"Uh-huh, and I WAS dating him, but now he won't pick up the phone," Alaina said softly. "All I get is Manny. Him and his stupid accent."

"So why don't I drive you there and you go talk to him in person?" I said as Alaina stood up.

"You're not mad?" Alaina blinked.

"No," I laughed. "Come on, I'll put on some shoes."

"Yay!" Alaina cheered.

I smiled as she ran out of the room. Anything to have that sweetie back to normal.

**ALAINA**

I nervously stepped out of the passenger seat. Looking back to Sara for some reassurance, she winked and I shivered. This was going to be major hard and she wouldn't get out of the car to help me. Darn.

I stepped up to the door and knocked, feeling rather small and weak. I never had much courage, especially when the subject was boys. I nearly fell off of the porch when the door opened, making my heart feel like a jackhammer, but it wasn't Mike, it was Luna.

"Hello?" She said in her weird drifty voice. I shuddered again.

"Um, is, uh, Mike home?" I said softly, and she frowned.

"That's really none of your business, small fry," She said with a growl. "Why don't you go date someone your OWN size?"

I took a deep breath. This bitch was NOT going to scare me away, not when I was so close. "Why don't YOU get your OWN boyfriend?" I said with a sort of surprising strength. Wow, I might actually be good at that. "Now scootch and tell Mike I'm here before I decide to hit you."

"You want to hit me?" She said, eyes beginning to glow.

"What's going on here?" Said a voice behind her. I froze up as Mike appeared in the doorway, pushing Luna to the side. Luna immediately gave me a dirty look as she wrapped her arms around his waist. "Alaina?" he said.

"Yeah," I breathed, watching Luna stick out her tongue at me.

"What… what are you doing here?"

"I came to talk to you," I put my hands on my hips, trying to ignore Luna running her hands on his forearm and silently taunting me. "Did I interrupt something?" My legs were melting, but I tried my very hardest to hide it.

"No," Mike said and, to my relief, he pushed Luna off of him. Stepping out, he closed the door on her angry face. "She's just… she was trying to…"

I shut him up the only way I knew how, wrapping my arms around him and kissing him. He broke away. "Did you come here to talk or kiss?" He said with a small smile.

"I dunno," I said quietly. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry," he said. "I shouldn't have used you."

"That was my own stupid fault," I said. "I blabbed to you as if you WEREN'T on the other team. Ha ha, stupid me." I was trying to make light of the fact that it was MY fault Tyler died. Not a good idea. My eyes welled up with tears and I got the sniffles.

"Hey," Mike hugged me close. "It's not your fault. It's not your fault, okay?"

"Yes… It…. Is," I said between sobs and deep breaths. "I… Told… about the…. Machine. Tyler… my… fault…." I wasn't making sense anymore and I knew it. I shook in his arms as he stroked my hair.

"We love you anyway," Mike said. "No one blames you. Things happen."

"Things HAPPEN?" I pushed him away angrily. "Things HAPPEN? Tyler died, it's my fault and that's all you can say to me?"

"Alaina! Shut up!" Mike shouted. I fell silent, looking up at him with probably my watery kitty cat eyes. "This is NOT your fault. You can't blame yourself. You won't."

"Why not?" I sniffled.

"Because I don't want to lose you," Mike pulled me back to him and held me. "I love you."

"I…" I whispered, closing my eyes. "I love you, too."

**TARA**

I felt absolutely totally pathetic. I mean, what was my deal? I didn't, like, love him or anything. He was cute, and nice, and funny, but God, it's not like… I stopped myself. How totally selfish. I choked on a dry sob and blew my nose. At least there was no one in the living room to see me.

I jumped as the door opened. Great, I thought as Aaron walked in.

"Tara?" He asked. "Are you… okay?"

"Do I LOOK okay, brainiac?" I snapped.

"Um," He stepped back. "No, of course not."

I softened and tried to smile. "S-sorry. I don't even know why I'm crying so much. It's just weird, you know? I, like, haven't stopped and what are you doing?" I watched him sit down and he slipped an arm around me. "What are you…. mmmph…" I said, cut off by a kiss. Aaron was kissing me. Oh my God, Aaron was kissing me. I was in so much shock I didn't even think about how wrong it was until he stopped. "Aaron," I said. "What was that?"

"I kissed you," He said. "…duh."

"But, why?" I backed away from him, almost falling off of the couch. "What, now that Tyler's out of the way you…"

"No!" He shouted, silencing me. "No, how could you even think that?!"

"Well, that's sure how it'll look," I murmured as he scooted closer. "I mean, what's everyone going to say? Besides, what if I don't WANT to like, date you…?" I felt really odd as he leaned closer. "What if…?"

He kissed me again and I literally melted in his arms. Kissing him back, I wrapped my arms around his neck and just enjoyed it. This had to be the best kiss ever. He was so good… "Hey," I said, pushing him off. "Aaron, this is seriously wrong. Did you think about the fact that technically you're an adult?"

"What?" He said, still dazed.

"Aaron, listen!" I shouted. "You're eighteen, remember? And I'm fifteen? Wrongness abounding?"

"Not wrong, I just have to…" Aaron started looking for an excuse. "I CAN wait, you know. I love you."

My eyebrows rose. "You? Wait? Hahahahaha."

"I can," He said, pushing my hair out of my face. "For you." He leaned in again and I kissed him more. I couldn't stop. It didn't feel wrong at all.

Actually, it felt totally right.

**CATTY**

"Steven," I whispered, nudging him. "Steven, are you awake?"

"Mmmph," he mumbled, rolling onto his side to face me. "What?"

"I just wanted to see if you were awake." I sighed and snuggled up to him. "I love you. I love you so much."

"Hey, listen," Steven murmured into my hair. "Do you think we should tell everyone what just happened, or…"

"No way," I said quickly. "My dad would so freak, you know him. All religious and stuff, he would say that we should be married before anything…"

"Well, I could," Steven backed up a little to look at me.

"Could what?"

"I'm seventeen, right?" He said. "I'll be eighteen in November. You'll be seventeen right after that, and then I could ask your dad."

"Ask him WHAT?" I giggled nervously.

"If I can marry you," He pushed my hair out of the way as he leaned in to kiss me. "What do you think? You want to get married?"

"Steven, November is next month," I said, shocked. "What are you… are you seriously asking me to marry you?"

"Yeah," His eyebrows furrowed. "Why wouldn't I be serious?"

"Shouldn't that wait?" His kisses were getting a little distracting. "Until things settle down, I mean? When I disband the team…"

"So you are doing it, then," Steven stopped kissing me and leaned away, staring into my eyes. "You really are going to disband Mission X."

"Yeah," I was suddenly wondering if that was such a hot idea. "I think it's the right thing to do. We're just too young, Steven, and with the X-Men around we aren't really needed. I think we should wait until we're a little older to be a team of superheroes."

"I get it," Steven nodded. "But some of the team are going to be mad about it. Ben wanted to go after Magneto. That kid is really starting to scare me."

"Me too." I buried my nose into the pillow and moaned. "I'm scared, Steven."

"Of what?"

"Screwing up, getting married, everything," I actually started crying. What was WRONG with me today? "Just everything."

"Hey, I'm here," Steven put an arm around my shoulder. "I'll always be here, okay? You can count on me."

I looked up at him and nodded, smiling. "I know."

**DOMINIQUE**

"Where are you going?" Kish asked me, a bit of a whine in his voice as I stormed my way toward the gates. "Dom… Dom, please, talk to me…"

"I don't speak to Bébés stupides," I spat at him, dialing the taxi service on my cell phone. My hands were shaking so much I had to start over twice.

"Huh?" Kish stopped walking. I didn't.

"I'm leaving," I said, finally turning around. "I can't stay here anymore. No one is going to do anything about Magneto, and no one here can help me anymore, not if the team is going to be disbanded."

"It is?" Kish looked surprised. Of course he did, he spent so much time in his room it's a wonder he knew anything.

"Oui, idiot. I have to get out of here. I give up." I dropped my cell phone. "Baiser," I cursed, and as I reached down to pick it up, my hand was blocked by Kish's.

"Let me help," He said, holding my cell phone as he stood up. He began to dial the taxi service for me.

"I don't…" I began. "But… you aren't going to try to stop me?"

"Of course not," Kish said softly. "Silly. Why would I do that? Here," He handed the cell phone back. "You're on hold."

"Why not?" I said, not taking the phone.

"Because…" He touched my shoulder and put the phone in my hand. "I'll have to follow you, won't I?"

"What?" I was suddenly nervous. "Why would you follow me? I thought…"

"I told you I wouldn't give up on you, and I meant it," He said, smiling a little. "Now, if you're quitting, I'm leaving too. Don't worry, I can sort of pay my own way, for a little while. Then I'll need to borrow some money."

I was soon aware of how close he was. I tried to step back but my feet weren't listening to me. "Kish…?" I whispered. He was way too close.

"I wish you wouldn't go, but if you are, I'm coming with you. Alright?"

"Why?"

"I think I know why your headaches go away when I'm near you," He said softly. I could feel his breath, but for this moment I didn't mind having him so close to me. He was right, my headaches melted when he was with me, when he smiled at me, whenever he did just about anything near me, and I couldn't understand why.

"Oh, really?" I said, still whispering. Our noses were touching now. I had to do something to stop this, this couldn't happen. I had to be mad at him, I had to find a reason to push him away like I always did.

"I think…" Kish put his arms around my waist. "We might…"

"I don't," I said, trying to lie. It didn't work, I didn't even believe it as my arms disobeyed and put themselves around his neck. "Merde, Kish, really…"

"Come on," He said. "You know it as much as I do, don't…"

"Please," I said, letting out a sting of curses as he kissed me. I had only been kissed twice in my entire life, due to my attitude and my strange nature, and they weren't like this. This was… good. It felt right. I kissed him back and let myself relax, free of thought for one of the few times in my life.

Maybe now that we knew, maybe I would have a little more relief.

**KISH**

"Why did you stop?" She asked.

"You're not leaving anymore, are you?" I asked a bit nervously. "Because if you are, I wasn't kidding about the borrowing money thing, I'm dirt broke right now."

She laughed at me. Even when it was at my expense, I loved it when Dom laughed. "No, I'm not leaving anymore," She said quietly, leaning in to kiss me again. "Why would I want to?"

"Hey," I put my hands on her shoulders. "You know, maybe this isn't the best place to do this."

"Maybe it isn't, but I like breaking the rules." Dominique smiled her weird little smile and I pretended to be freaked out. "Okay, fine, where should we go?"

"I don't know, where do you…" I suddenly glanced around. "Hey. Hey, this is where we first met."

Dominique looked around too, and she laughed. "You're right. I dropped my things here…"

"And I helped pick them up."

"No, you tried to get me to stop smoking," Dominique put a finger on my chest. "And you made an ass of yourself, if I do say so myself."

"I did not," I said in mock anger.

"Yes you did, I was there," she cocked her head to the side. "I do remember this, you know."

"I was there too," I said. "And I did NOT do any such thing."

"Okay, okay," She laughed, taking my hand. "Come on, let's go enjoy our last few months of childhood while we still have a chance."

"You mean, like, before the world runs out of candy corn?" I said blankly. "I won't stop being a kid until they run out of candy corn."

She punched me in the shoulder in true Dominique fashion.

"Ow! Alright, alright, I was kidding, kidding!" I held my hands up in surrender. "Just give me a second. You wait here, I'll be back in a minute."

I ran back towards the house and listened to her count. She was being difficult today, and those were my favorite days. I went into the kitchen to grab a sandwich. Passing the mirror on my way out, I stopped. I thought I had seen something, something moving, but… Silly, I thought to myself. Reflections don't move.

I bamfed back to Dominique.

"Seventy two seconds, mister 'give me a second'," She said. "That's seventy two seconds that you owe ME next time I say 'give me a second.'"

"Okay, fine," I laughed. "…Hey, Dominique?"

"Yes?"

"I love you." I kissed her again, and she kissed me back.

Things were looking up.

**BEN**

I hate.

I hate, I hate, I hate. Magneto, I hate Magneto, I hate.

I looked out the window towards Tyler's grave. I felt the rage boiling inside, struggling to get out. I wanted to scream, I wanted to throw things, I wanted to cry. But I sat, silent, on my bed, just breathing.

I hate.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, holding it in my lungs. Tyler. I missed him. When I felt this way I always could go to him and he would listen to me go on and on and on. Now Catty was thinking about disbanding the team. She wasn't SAYING it, but I heard her think about it. Disband? I wasn't finished yet.

I am a hero. I am not finished.

I HATE.

I will not give in. I will NOT give in. If Catty disbands the team, so be it. I will NOT quit.

Not until Magneto gets what he deserves.

**THE END**

If anyone wants to see what happens next with these guys, the second part of the RPG is roughly it, "Dances are not for the faint of heart", with a few changes. Also, look for more chapters in my Kurtty, and NeXt Gen should be out soon. If anyone wants to continue Mission X you are free to write up some stories with these characters yourselves. There are still a lot of loose ends you guys can cover. Thank you everybody!

MAN I am glad this is finished.


	24. Fighting History

_Hello everyone! I know writing has been slow and I truly apologize, but for everyone who likes Domikish here you go!_

**Dear Father,**

**I have decided to write to you. I have no idea why, like I tell everyone I'm impulsive so bear with me here. My head is pretty messed up right now and every time I turn around you're standing over me, looking over everything I do, and it's starting to freak me out, so STOP IT. Actually I know it's not really you it's my screwed up mind, but still. Cut it out already.**

**I need some time. Maybe some space. I really haven't stopped caring about your cause; actually I'm not sure WHAT I believe anymore. It's complicated, and I can't tell you why I'm with Mission X because I don't know why myself. These people seem pretty cool, sort of, and they almost leave me alone most of the time. I'm sorry for leaving. I'm sorry for lying. I did what I had to do. **

**When I see you I fear for my life and I'm starting to wonder why. I understand I am a disappointment; I deserve everything you have done. But I had to get AWAY from you. I just felt this need to get OUT. Do you know what I mean? **

**By now you are throwing this into the garbage can (two points). But if you haven't yet, please consider what I wrote. I don't know why but I can't stop caring about you, you're still my father, my only family. I just want you to know I'm sorry.**

_**Will you look at that idiot's apologies? God he is so annoying. He doesn't even have the backbone to betray you. If I could I would come back to you, dear Father, believe me this place SUCKS and all I want is to slit all of these people's throats.**_

_**I will send everything I can to help you against the X-Men and this sniveling new group of insignificant teenagers.**_

_**He isn't sorry. He doesn't believe in your dream, as a matter of fact I don't think he really BELIEVES in ANYTHING. He's just a fool, a coward who doesn't deserve to be on your amazing team. I will prevail over this idiot, father, and I will return to you.**_

………………

Kish blinked and pulled his pen off of the paper. What the Hell, he thought. I don't… He shook his head in confusion. He didn't remember writing all of that. He jumped when he heard a knock at the door and dropped his pen onto the desk. He was bleeding from cuts up and down his arms and didn't remember making them. He couldn't let anyone SEE him like this.

He grabbed a towel off of his bed and soaked up most of the blood. The knock sounded again. "Kish?" He heard Dominique call. "Kish, are you in there?"

"Ah," he said, tossing the towel aside. She was okay. "Yeah. Come on in."

Dominique opened the door and looked around as Kish slumped into his chair, putting his head in his hands. "Kish, are you alright?" She asked, stepping in and closing the door. "You've been in here for hours."

The blood streamed down his arms again. The cuts were really deep this time. "I'm fine," he said, grabbing the towel again. "I was just… writing. Poorly, I might add. And I think Aquarius wrote a bit of this."

Dominique walked over and put a hand on his shoulder, seeing his arms and gasping. "I told you, Demure, you have to STOP this," she said angrily, taking the towel from him and wrapping it around his left arm. "Ugh, you're going to KILL yourself."

"Already did that," Kish joked darkly, wincing as she squeezed on his arm. "Ow, what are you doing…?" 

"Teaching you a lesson," she said, squeezing his arm again. He cried out in pain. "Trying to get the bleeding to stop." Se stopped squeezing his arm and took off the towel, putting it on his right arm. "Stupide. I have to keep a closer eye on you." He winced again and hissed.

"Stop that," he whined. "You're hurting me."

"You want me to stop, stop cutting yourself," Dominique scolded. "And don't start giving me merde about, 'oh, it wasn't me, it was Aquarius.' That's you're excuse for EVERYTHING."

"But…?" Kish began.

"Don't even start."

Kish sighed dramatically, then cried out as she squeezed his right arm. "Owowowow," he whined. "That REALLY hurts."

"Petite," Dominique said softly. "To you, EVERYTHING hurts. I'm sorry."

"Haha," Kish said, leaning into her stomach. "Hey, you're just doing your job. That's okay."

Dominique pulled the towel off. "There," she said. "the bleeding stopped." She wrapped her arms around his shoulders as they started shaking with dry sobs. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know," Kish said quietly. "I just don't know anymore." He put his arms around her waist and shook his head. "I don't even know who I am anymore. I'm just really, really scared and confused right now. Ever since the Professor went into my head in the infirmary, it's been getting worse."

"Worse?" Dominique looked at him.

"Yeah." Kish nodded. "Worse. He's been coming out more often, I'm having more blackouts. I don't know if I'll win this."

"You will, I promise," Dominique said, pulling him closer. "You're strong, I believe in you."

"Tell that to Aquarius."

Dominique smiled. "Hey, ass hole. Stay away from my Fiancé."

Kish grinned his weird grin. "Hey, I think he squirmed!"

"Of COURSE he did. He's probably scared of me, just like you."

Aquarius HAD squirmed, but his motive was far from fear. He smiled to himself, lying in wait. Soon, he could strike again, and this business with the engagement was the perfect target for his new plan…

_So, yeah, I just came up with that and wrote it out. Just a little one shot, mostly for XxXFairyQueenXxX, it really only makes sense if you've been playing on the Mission X RPG. –Nighty_


End file.
